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So why has her opinion of me suddenly become so important?
12
MAYA
When I open my eyes, I immediately look to Selliss’ spot next to mine, noting that he’s not in it. I already know that I’ve slept in quite late because I seem to do that every day now.
It’s not like I have much else to do but sleep when Selliss isn’t here.
I close my eyes, breathing in the scent that he left behind. It’s grown to be a comforting scent to me. It could be because being here in his room is the safest I’ve ever felt in my entire life.
Not that this is the best situation I’ve been in, but it certainly is the safest. In here, no one can touch me without Selliss’ permission. And I get the feeling that he would never give that to anyone. He has grown very possessive over the past two weeks or so.
At least, I think it’s been two weeks.
Finally, I force myself to roll out of bed. I’ll take a nice long bath, and hopefully, by then it will be close to lunchtime. I obviously missed breakfast. The servants have taken to not leaving it if I’m still asleep when they arrive.
I would never tell this to Selliss, though. He might think the servants are purposely not feeding me breakfast and that I’m lying to protect them.
Which I would never do. Fuck those naga women and their hoity-toity attitudes around me.
I draw myself a bath, adding a little of my favorite soap to the water.
“Smells just like home,” I murmur as I watch the water fill the tub like I’m in a trance.
Once it’s filled to my satisfaction, I turn off the faucet and lower my naked body into the tub. I’ve surprisingly gotten used to being naked all the time. I almost don’t even notice it.
Sure, the servants made quite the show of giving me weird looks for the first week, but I ignored them and eventually, they stopped.
I’ve honestly forgotten what it feels like to be covered up. Other than the fact that it’s definitely a lot warmer.
Once I’ve washed up, I hum to myself as I dry off and head back out to the room. I curl up in what has become my favorite spot, the window seat. It’s high enough that no one can see me, while I can see everything.
“Hello, Protheka. How are you today?” I ask as I brush out my damp hair. “What’s going on in the world out there, other than the rain?”
I begin to sing to myself, a simple song that I’ve made up over the past week as my boredom gets the best of me.
“Sitting alone, this empty room surrounding me. No friendly voice, no joyous sound, just silence I have found in thee. Peering outside at the gloomy rain, raindrops fall fast and sound. I long for someone to ease my pain, someone to erase my frown.”
“Your voice is very beautiful.”
I turn to see a naga woman standing by the bed with a new set of sheets. She gives me a soft smile, and it’s obvious she doesn’t hate humans as much as the rest of the naga I’ve met here. She seems very young, maybe a little naïve.
“Thank you,” I say, turning back to the window.
“Don’t talk to it,” another naga says.
It’s Verna, the usual naga that cleans the room. She’s a hateful bitch, and I spend every second that she’s in this room waiting for her to leave. She’s the worst one I’ve come across.
“Yes, ma’am,” the younger girl says.
As they clean, I allow my thoughts to drift again. I watch soldiers come and go. I watch deliveries arrive.
There’s one thing I’ve noticed during my daily window-watching – there are no children here. I’ve never once spotted a child. In fact, I never even see women out there. Only the naga men, and a few human ones who work for them.
“Fucking animal. The Captain is a disgusting man. No wonder he is the King's favorite,” Verna complains from the entryway as she begins dusting.
This is the first time I’ve heard her say anything like this, although she is usually alone when she's here.
