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βLet your soul take you where you long to be.β
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ: #CD5C5C β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #C5E3BFγ
|| Still Into you || Paramore ||
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ: #CD5C5C β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #C5E3BFγ
|| Still Into you || Paramore ||
Cress knew what they had to do next, they were going to have to infiltrate Tartaria in order to capture Jezebeth AKA Narina. It wasn't going to be easy, they would have to be disguised. Perhaps getting the Princess Una's blessing would be imperative for the people's cooperation? If Una ordered it, maybe the others would hand Jezebeth over willingly? Cress wasn't sure. Jezebeth had been asleep for a very long time. Cress was thankful that her people had received her well, no doubt due to her nearly dying for the cause of freeing the lower tiers, but Una didn't have anything like that underneath her belt. No doubt the Princess was loved and respected, but shady characters would attempt to turn her into their good little puppet.
No doubt their mother was one of these shadowy figures working in the dark. She was priming her strings to sink her claws into her next victim. "We can't let... her get to... us." Cress said and even with the breathlessness there was determination laced into her voice. "She thinks that... just because she... has her robot... army that she's... got a chance." Cress looked up at Nee then, a smile on her face. "We'll prove to... her who's the... best!" Even if Cress described it like that, the world was not black and white. The world was a tumultuous shade of beautiful, vibrant colors. People didn't live in shades of gray and navy, they were a variety of technicolor clothes, skins, and personalities. It was the world that Cress had chosen to live in.
Heron came in then, being her usual, flirty self that made Cress's cheeks turn a tinge of red that nearly matched her eyes. Just thinking about the fact that soon they would be going on a date, it made Cress blush even further. She hadn't told anyone about it, not even her beloved twin sister. Truth be told, there hadn't been time to tell anyone that she and Heron would be training together. Then the matter of Kora was brought up and a certain emotion flickered through Cress's eyes. Guilt perhaps, or maybe regret? "I can put... her on medical... leave until she... heals up." Cress said, knowing that Kora wouldn't be happy. The knight had sustained major wounds, she would need time to mend. Even if Cress did put Kora on medical leave, or temporary suspension, she knew that Kora would simply overlook the order and show up to fight anyways.
Cress brought up a good point then, that Kora was still working through her emotions, emotions that Shiro had brought to light with her stellar puppy therapy. Cress was sure if you put Shiro in a puppy costume, it could melt even the coldest of hearts. Even Narina, who apparently showed her love by kicking her daughters in the sides. Nee explained something else then, that once Narina began to grow desperate she would target the other nations. "I think Una... may have grown... attached to Riana." Cress said contemplatively, "Even if she... doesn't show it... I'm sure Una... is grateful." Cress looked out one of the fake windows, showing a nighttime landscape. "I know I... would be."
Una and Cress shared a lot of similarities. They both had been trapped in their bodies, in excruciating pain and unable to communicate with anyone outside of their own heads. The two of them had been treated by Queen Riana for an illness no one else could even begin to explain. Cress's eyes widened at a sudden realization. "The illness in... Tartaria, could it... be that Narina... was poisoning them... to keep them... weak?" Ashia Palace provided water to the desert country, they were dependent on them. "Our water supply." She tried to convey her thoughts in as little words as possible. "The pipes."
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βYes Mistress.β
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ: #FFAEB9 β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #63D1F4γ
|| I'm on Top of the World|| Imagine Dragons ||
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ: #FFAEB9 β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #63D1F4γ
|| I'm on Top of the World|| Imagine Dragons ||
Shiro nodded her head, the feel of the ring on her finger a comfort. "I know," Shiro said, "But you looked so broken." In the end Shiro hadn't been able to do anything for Nee but cry. Cress had saved her by donating her blood for Nee. Shiro couldn't do that, she had simply whimpered and spiraled and had ended up being more trouble than good. Shiro wished she could have been useful, she really couldn't do anything, she was an awful lady in-no! Shiro wasn't a lady in waiting anymore, she was a Queen and she had to start thinking like one. Corren had fixed Nee, her beloved was still here, perhaps still a bit shaken, but otherwise present. Shiro closed her hand around her ring so that she would stop nervously fiddling with it.
Nee said that she wasn't a dog. Shiro wiggled, she knew that, but the pup couldn't help thinking like that. "I'm a queen," Shiro repeated, trying to sound sure of herself. "An equal, just like you." Shiro smiled, seeming a bit unsteady, as though she didn't quite believe it herself. "It was fun, we did a lot together and even though I've never seen Aine, she was there, and Itward too." Shiro looked at Cress then, "Sorry, um, you weren't there." The Princess smiled anyhow and didn't seem to mind that she had been excluded from the dream. It was an alternate reality, no doubt what could have come true if Shiro hadn't been abandoned by her parents and Nee hadn't been sent to earth for her own safety.
It was weird to think about, if Shiro had ended up not being abandoned, no doubt she would have been kidnapped from the sanitary tier. She wasn't sure what could have happened next, but she did know that kids, especially ones like her that had such doll like looks, weren't left alone. They were snatched up, taking to various places and forced to work in brothels, or escort services. Some were sold as slaves to noble houses and still others had augments put in place and were sold like prized pets. So her dreams weren't so far fetched, if Shiro hadn't been abandoned she could have ended up as a little pup sitting in a box in the Tower Tier, looking for a family to take her home.
Heron came in then and Shiro wriggled, changing nightgowns quickly so that Nee wouldn't be exposed to Heron. Cress was different, Cress was Nee's twin, but Heron was known to be a little too touchy-feely in the wrong way. Shiro leaned back on the bed, her head on Nee's lap as she drank from the bottle that had been provided for dinner. Nee was drinking a juice box, an important source of energy for replenishing the blood she had lost. Shiro was simply trying to replace the nutrients she had missed by skipping lunch. Shiro felt Nee's hand on her head, praise for helping to fix Kora. Shiro smiled, blushing, "I just had to make her realize that she isn't furniture."
Shiro had used to think the same way, that she was no good, just a side character with a tragic backstory. Nee had made Shiro realize that she could be more than just a lady in waiting, a dog for everyone to kick around. With Nee's help, Shiro realized that making decisions for herself wasn't all that scary, that she wasn't a dog or a servant, she was an individual and even though Shiro had trouble with deciding what she wanted to do, she had hopes that one day she really could be an equal to Nee. They were talking about war things again, things that Shiro didn't have any knowledge of and so she was going to remain quiet until something she could add to came up.