[Flashback] Servitude (Darren)

by **Aki** on April 1st, 2011, 2:07 am

85th of Winter, 504 AV

“I do not want to.”

The gruff man raised a brow. “Are you talking back, Aki?”

The small girl bowed her head. “No father.”

“Good.” He turned back to his bowl of soup, sipping the broth slowly. “You may leave now.”

“No father...” Aki gulped painfully, the knot in her throat refusing to go down. It took all her strength just to say the two words without breaking down, the long winded, logical argument she had been planning for the past few days just caught in her throat like a leaden weight.

First he scoffed, choking a little on his soup. Then he laughed, a short bark like laugh. Aki cringed at the harsh sound. “Did you just tell me no? Aki, aki...” he muttered, shaking his head.”.. I thought you would know your place by now.” He stood up, the feet of the chair scraping painfully against the flagstone floor. Aki didn’t move, she couldn’t. Aki’s father walked over to her, slowly, menacingly until his shadow loomed over her.

Aki didn’t need to look up to know the mean features of her father’s face; the rows of tortured wrinkles, the heavy bags beneath his eyes, and the jagged teeth stained a noxious yellow. She didn’t need to look into his dead eyes to know what was coming next. She braced herself, quietly hissing out the air from her lungs. If she timed it perfectly she wouldn’t pass out. Her practice paid off. Her lungs were empty by the time the heavy handed punch pounded her stomach; bruises didn’t show up there. She bent over in pain. The pain was dull. Her stomach was empty; she hadn’t eaten that day; a watery bile filled her mouth; she swallowed the acid, burning her throat.

The shadow withdrew. “Clean up the table. When I get back make sure all your stuff is packed up and ready to leave. Make sure you’re cleaned up as well... this is the first time they’ll be seeing you.” The shadow always made sure not to cause too much damage, Aki knew the pain would fade in a bell or two. The door slammed behind Aki’s father.

Aki tried to pick herself up from the floor, her arms quavered, unable to support her weight; she stopped, and let herself rest for another chime before attempting again. She had failed, she had tried to fight him and she couldn't. She didn't want to leave. At the sound of the bedroom door creaking open, Aki stood up quickly.

One of the younger children pattered out into the kitchen/main room, barefoot, clad only in an oversized shirt. “Sis? I’m hungry.”

The air felt sticky and suffocating. Aki brought her hand up and clutched at her mother’s necklace, trying to gather her calm, trying to push thoughts of her father out of her mind: Aki tried to be strong. “Ok, hold on. Father didn’t finish his soup, why don’t you finish it off for him? Here let me help you up. Is your fever going away.” Aki flitted about worriedly, focusing all her energy and thoughts on her sibling. “We’ll have enough money for a proper healer tomorrow. Ok, so don’t worry.” She rubbed his back comfortingly as the little boy slurped up the soup greedily. Aki’s stomach had been growling desperately for the past few bells, but after the punch, the sight of food made her queasy.

Aki walked away from her brother when he was sure he was ok. She stepped lightly into the sleeping quarters she shared with the rest of her siblings. Her entire life was already packed away in a single beat up sack that lay tied up on her pillow. The room was empty; the room was silent. If she listened closely, Aki could hear the clinking of a spoon against the soup bowl. Her shoulders drooped, finally relaxing. Her stomach hurt but not as much as her chest; Aki felt like she couldn’t breath. She sat down at the edge of her bed and cradled her head in her hands. She closed her eyes, already weary of the day. She pulled out the leather thong that kept her hair up in a tight pony tail. Her silvery strands cloaked her face like a web of safety.

ooc :

by **Darren** on April 1st, 2011, 4:07 pm

Sifler strolled around after work to where Aki was. A sense of superiority as he arrived at Aki's residence he didn't waste any time with pleasantries as he merely strolled into the dilapidated building. Merely snatching up the young girl and leaving without as much as a indication of greeting or excusing himself from the family. When he was at Whitevine hol he put Aki down without even bothering to look at her he started to talk.

"Aki, since your not welcomed in your own house you shall live in mine instead. I'll be sure to take care of you if you can manage your duties around my household. Don't think this is charity, if I find that your not pulling your weight, there will be consequences. Alright ...daughter, let's show you your new home then." He said as they moved into the room. The place seemed simple enough, a main room with a hearth, table, chairs and a window. A place that oddly enough didn't look like it would need to clean and didn't look like it would be hard to keep clean. In the back of stood a young boy, with a curious look on his face.

"This is my boy Darren, you two play nice now" he said somewhat snidely before he left to the clinic. The boy watched her for a bit taking her in, as they heard his father left. "So your the new sister? Errr I was sorta expecting a smaller sister. Erm...so uh hi, so I'm Darren Whitevine.What's your name? I like to do sports and stuff. So how about you?" He said looking somewhat shy, his body look withdrawn as he played with his watch. Is this how sisters are made? he thought, she's looks really weird. White hair and all

by **Aki** on April 1st, 2011, 10:43 pm

There were no goodbyes; there were no tears. Silfer WhiteVine spirited Aki away as if she was just a chair to be used and sold. Aki kept her head down, counting her footsteps as she was led to her ‘new home’.

He knew nothing about her, even if he did, Aki was sure he didn’t care; they never did. His words hurt her, cutting her to the quick. She knew the deal: she was to ‘work’ for Silfer, under the pretence of his daughter, in exchange for coin for her siblings’ especially for the ones that needed healers. If she did well Silfer even promised to send a couple gold mizas per season. Aki was worth 50 gold mizas.

Silfer left Aki alone with his son – Darren was his name; Aki’s lips quivered a little as she mouthed the name in her mind. She didn’t know what to do; her small hands were stuffed into her pockets to keep herself from fidgeting. Her silvery eyes danced, opening wide to look at Darren. Rarely had the timid girl seen any one other than her family, usually trapped in her house caring for the younger ones. She had been too afraid and angry to look at Silfer, but she only felt curiosity towards the other boy – her new brother. She flinched when Darren spoke; she lowered her gaze from his somber, raven eyes to his watch, focusing on his young fingers fiddling with the curious gadget. She listened intently as he talked to her, withdrawing into herself, scrunching her body as small as possible. When he asked her name, she tried to clear her throat. However shy Darren felt at his new sister – Aki felt over fifty times expounded. She tried to say her name but all that came out was a gravely whisper. She cleared her throat and tried again. “A-a-aki. My name is Aki…” She clutched at her torso, her emaciated cheeks flushing a heated red when her stomach grumbled loudly – she had yet to eat.

by **Darren** on April 2nd, 2011, 2:11 am

Darren eyes didn't falter as she took her sweet time telling him her name. Oh, she seems to not have any real self confidence huh? he thought furrowing his brow with an unimpressed look on his face. He shrugged as her stomach growled, sighing he didn't bother asking her if she wanted anything to eat as he went over to a cabinet in the other room. Inside he found a fruit that normally was set aside for him should he get really hungry between meals.

He came back into the room and split it with her. "Here you can have this half" He said giving her the larger piece. "Well I guess I can talk for the both of us." he said as he strolled around the room. "As you can see the job of you being a maid is sorta fake. I'm thinking my dad will have you work as a massage assistant. Heck I heard your even better then him when it came to that. Maybe you can give me one later and I can return the favor?" He smiled as he finally finished his halve of the fruit.

"Anyways, just watch out." He looked around to make sure his new sister was held in suspense. "My dad knows magic, and he just taught me not too long ago. You better behave or your big brother Darren throw boulders at you" he joked. He waited for her to finish eating before he continued. "Anyways know, we have a lot of free time until dinner. What do you wanna do? Do you know any cool places nearby? Oh! Or maybe games or a song we can do?"

by **Aki** on April 2nd, 2011, 2:45 am

It was like a a burst of ecstasy in her mouth. Aki wanted to devour the fruit in a bite, but she forced herself to nibble politely as Darren watched. She noticed he had given her the larger half, a gesture she wasn’t use to. She wanted to thank him; she wanted to show him how grateful she was for a kindness she hadn’t experienced since her mother died. She sucked on each bite, draining the juices before swallowing, as she listened to Darren’s every word. She nodded vigorously when he suggested giving him a massage - it was more than just a job for her, it was a fulfilling hobby. Seeing the pleasure and look of utter peace someone got after a satisfying massage gave Aki a feeling of accomplishment.

Even though she tried so hard to savor the delicious treat, Aki finished her piece of fruit soon after Darren. She brought her hands up to her mouth, in fear, when he mentioned Silfer’s magical abilities. She closed her eyes, shutting them tightly; her father practiced magic. She gulped down the knot in her throat and tried to continue listening to Darren.

When he finished asking her a plethora of questions, Aki tried to gather all her courage to talk. She didn’t want to seem rude and anti-social when her new brother was being so kind to her. She wanted him to like her. “I uh-” She held her hands together in front of her lap, and bowed deep, until she was parallel to the ground. “Thank you so much big brother Darren. The fruit was very delicious.” She straightened her back, nervously biting her soft pouty lips. She wanted to show him she was useful, that she deserved his love. “I ca-can give you a massage you now if you would like. I can also sing a little, mostly local songs.” She blushed, her cheeks flushing a rosy pink. “-some people,” She stuttered, a little embarrassed. “Think I have a nice voice.”

by **Darren** on April 2nd, 2011, 4:10 am

Darren nodded enthusiastically at Aki's words, he still felt a bit awkward with her acting all formal and respectful. True, that's how he wanted everyone else to treat him. A higher being among the smaller Avanthalians, but not family. "Heh good to hear. Hmm how do I put this delicately though, don't be so formal with me. Your my brand new sister, act like it! We can't have people look at the WhiteVines as timid people. We take it upon ourselves to rid ourselves of the dangers to everyone's health! We are heroes!" He exclaimed excitedly, posing rather dramatically. Perhaps he got too excited, perhaps he was just playing around, but he didn't seem ashamed or embarrassed as he held the pose for 3-5 seconds. Hey come on your suppose to react he thought as he stopped the silly pose.

"Well then!" he said looking forward to the massage, "lets get started! I'll get the oil and the smelly candles!" He went into the magical cabinet in the back again finding the stuff he saw his parents occasionally use. He passed the oil to Aki before lighting the candles. "Alright so what's the song called? I really don't have much of a singing voice since most of the time I yell more then anything." he said taking off his shirt. His body looked rather thrashed, occasional bumps and bruises across his back and his arms were muscular for his age, he looked pretty weird built since he was a lean looking fellow at the moment. Darren looked back at Aki with a smile "Yea the old man works me hard also. I really don't do much and this is what I'm required to do. Make this body of mine look one day akin to that of a god."

by **Vala** on April 2nd, 2011, 4:51 am

He posed, like a hero. Aki brought her hands up to her face, about to cover her eyes, but stopped herself. She felt bad when Darren stopped posing, looking a little dejected at her negative/apathetic/embarrassed reaction. She continued to stand in a stunned silence as Darren scuttled off to gather materials for his massage.

When he came back, Aki nearly fainted; He took his shirt off. And just like that, he was baring himself, half naked to her. It hadn’t even been half a bell in her new home and already she was faced with the first, half naked, male body that wasn’t her actual, biological brother’s. “Oi-oil? a-and ca-candles?” Aki stuttered. She massaged her younger siblings when they weren’t feeling well, she even massaged her mother when she was bed ridden, but she was use to doing it with a layer of cloth between them. Never had she worked with bare skin, oil, and candles before. Aki felt the blood rushing to her face, especially her ears. She took the oil with her mouth agape, as Darren lit the candles.

He splayed out on a bed, the aromatic candles on a side table, filling the room with a delicious and relaxing scent. Aki stood there, oil in hand, flabbergasted. She forced herself out of her trance, in a chime or two, when Darren still remained waiting for her on the bed.

She walked over tentatively, unsure of how this was supposed to go. He wasn’t her brother, not her real one, but he kept calling her sister; she didn’t know how to feel about that. She didn’t have the same feelings for him as she did with her other brothers; she wasn’t sure about the kind of feeling stirring up inside her at all; her stomach flipped and turned, her fingers tingled, almost painfully.

Darren had splayed out in the very middle of the bed. It was too far in for Aki to stand to the side and do her work, but the bed was also too small for her to sit at the edge without sliding off. She was only left with one option - straddle his back. Aki was wearing a fairly modest skirt, which only made things more uncomfortable. She was still too young to understand why she was feeling all warm and uncomfortable all of a sudden, but she was old enough to know that girls and boys usually didn’t do this - but since they were brother and sister she figured it was ok for her to give him a massage.

Making sure not to put much weight on him, instead leaning on her knees and shins, Aki had to hike up her skirt up to her thighs so she could properly straddle Darren. She opened the oil and kept it leaning against her leg as she poured a small portion into her palm. She rubbed the lotion into both her hands, it quickly began tingling, a warm and pleasant sensation. Aki blushed furiously as she realized she was almost purring in pleasure. She quickly focused her attention on Darren’s exposed back. She rubbed slowly, using her body weight to help her get enough force. Her hands were small and a little calloused, but they were strong from years of hard work. She quickly targeted the knots of muscle scattered about Darren’s back and shoulders. She wasn’t use to such a toughened body, so Aki had to pause regularly to rub her own hands as they cramped up. She tried to shake them out, but stopped when a dab of oil got on her cheek; she wiped it away with the back of her hand. The candles’ aromas were beginning to fill the room with a heady, mind numbing scent.

As Aki got into the massage, she cleared her throat, and began singing her favorite song. Her voice was small, but clear, like a soft breeze.

Think of me, think of me fondly
When we've said goodbye
Remember me once in a while
Please promise me, you'll try

Then you'll find that once again you long
To take your heart back and be free
If you'll ever find a moment
Spare a thought for me

We never said our love was evergreen
Or as unchanging as the sea
But if you can still remember
Stop and think of me

Think of all the things
We've shared and seen
Don't think about the way
Things might have been

Think of me, think of me waking
Silent and resigned
Imagine me trying too hard
To put you from my mind

A warm droplet, a single tear, streamed down Aki’s cheek and landed on Darren’s back.

ooc :

by **Aki** on April 2nd, 2011, 4:53 am

He posed, like a hero. Aki brought her hands up to her face, about to cover her eyes, but stopped herself. She felt bad when Darren stopped posing, looking a little dejected at her negative/apathetic/embarrassed reaction. She continued to stand in a stunned silence as Darren scuttled off to gather materials for his massage.

When he came back, Aki nearly fainted; He took his shirt off. And just like that, he was baring himself, half naked to her. It hadn’t even been half a bell in her new home and already she was faced with the first, half naked, male body that wasn’t her actual, biological brother’s. “Oi-oil? a-and ca-candles?” Aki stuttered. She massaged her younger siblings when they weren’t feeling well, she even massaged her mother when she was bed ridden, but she was use to doing it with a layer of cloth between them. Never had she worked with bare skin, oil, and candles before. Aki felt the blood rushing to her face, especially her ears. She took the oil with her mouth agape, as Darren lit the candles.

He splayed out on a bed, the aromatic candles on a side table, filling the room with a delicious and relaxing scent. Aki stood there, oil in hand, flabbergasted. She forced herself out of her trance, in a chime or two, when Darren still remained waiting for her on the bed.

She walked over tentatively, unsure of how this was supposed to go. He wasn’t her brother, not her real one, but he kept calling her sister; she didn’t know how to feel about that. She didn’t have the same feelings for him as she did with her other brothers; she wasn’t sure about the kind of feeling stirring up inside her at all; her stomach flipped and turned, her fingers tingled, almost painfully.

Darren had splayed out in the very middle of the bed. It was too far in for Aki to stand to the side and do her work, but the bed was also too small for her to sit at the edge without sliding off. She was only left with one option - straddle his back. Aki was wearing a fairly modest skirt, which only made things more uncomfortable. She was still too young to understand why she was feeling all warm and uncomfortable all of a sudden, but she was old enough to know that girls and boys usually didn’t do this - but since they were brother and sister she figured it was ok for her to give him a massage.

Making sure not to put much weight on him, instead leaning on her knees and shins, Aki had to hike up her skirt up to her thighs so she could properly straddle Darren. She opened the oil and kept it leaning against her leg as she poured a small portion into her palm. She rubbed the lotion into both her hands, it quickly began tingling, a warm and pleasant sensation. Aki blushed furiously as she realized she was almost purring in pleasure. She quickly focused her attention on Darren’s exposed back. She rubbed slowly, using her body weight to help her get enough force. Her hands were small and a little calloused, but they were strong from years of hard work. She quickly targeted the knots of muscle scattered about Darren’s back and shoulders. She wasn’t use to such a toughened body, so Aki had to pause regularly to rub her own hands as they cramped up. She tried to shake them out, but stopped when a dab of oil got on her cheek; she wiped it away with the back of her hand. The candles’ aromas were beginning to fill the room with a heady, mind numbing scent.

As Aki got into the massage, she cleared her throat, and began singing her favorite song. Her voice was small, but clear, like a soft breeze.

Think of me, think of me fondly
When we've said goodbye
Remember me once in a while
Please promise me, you'll try

Then you'll find that once again you long
To take your heart back and be free
If you'll ever find a moment
Spare a thought for me

We never said our love was evergreen
Or as unchanging as the sea
But if you can still remember
Stop and think of me

Think of all the things
We've shared and seen
Don't think about the way
Things might have been

Think of me, think of me waking
Silent and resigned
Imagine me trying too hard
To put you from my mind

A warm droplet, a single tear, streamed down Aki’s cheek and landed on Darren’s back.

ooc :

by **Darren** on April 3rd, 2011, 10:19 pm

The massage was invigorating, her hands felt soothing and slick as she moved her hands through his rough exterior. She felt pretty light on his back, Darren not feeling at all embarrassed by the straddling position. It was needed to get the job done and she didn't want to stand so that was fine to him. He relaxed with the scent of the candles in the air, trying to etch the massage into his mind. He tried to recall such a time he had such a wonderful experience from anyone else and found himself at a loss for an answer. As Aki started singing he tried to sing along in a rather raspy but small voice as to not interrupt her rhythm.

As she finished a song he felt another drop of liquid hit his body, this one feeling rather warm as it hit his body. He turned around to see that it was actually a tear that came from Aki. "Oh...you want your turn now? Well why didn't you say so?" he asked grabbing her by the arms. Without another word he flipped positions with her and started aggressively working on her. He too straddled Aki as he first worked on her legs while he waited for her to take of her shirt.

He roughly massaged her thighs and then her calves and finally on the feet, taking no shame or forethought in the process. He used his elbows alongside his arms, for the massage, as it looked like he was actually putting her in a wrestling position, often tried to stretch her legs a bit too far or putting too much pressure into one point.

Finally he was done with the lower part of her body as he finally got up, turned and sat on Aki's waist, bouncing up and down playfully testing his new cushiony position. "What's this? You haven't took off your shirt yet! You know what that means? I'll have to take it off of you myself!!!" he growled post-aggressive-playful as he frighteningly ripped off the back of her shirt in a maniacal laughing frenzy. He then applied the oil on his victim apply a bit too generously as he emptied the rest of the container on Aki. He then massaged her back with as much gingerness and tenderly he did with her legs. So Darren basically piledrived her back ferociously elbow massaged her back jumping up and down on her waist in doing so.

At the end he had a thin line of sweat on his brow, the massage was a bit more exciting and exhausting then he thought. He looked at his massaging partner, looking somewhat worn out herself. He smiled, was happy to see his personal touch pleased her also. He looked back to see one remaining candle unlit next to him. "Oh I think I missed one" he said as he picked it up and moved to light in with another candle. Now this would have been fine if he wasn't interrupted as his father opened the door and looked into the room.

Darren, startled by the sudden appearance of his father surprised him as he very clumsily dropped the two candles he had. "WHAT ARE YOU-" Sifler started but was cut off as he saw a bit of Aki's back catch on fire. The scene of his son stradling the back of the new house maid was bad enough. But the fact that he tore off most of her shirt made it even worse and now with her suddenly catching on fire made the scene chaotic as both Sifler and Darren tried to get Aki out of the house and into the snow outside the house.

by **Darren** on May 20th, 2011, 12:05 am

Darren and Sifler fervently tried to position the burning Aki outside to the safety of snow. A look of complete incomprehensible surprise approached every Whitevine's face as the burning Aki has lead outside. It would have been great to notice and appreciate that the oil on Aki actually wasn't letting her get burnt too badly but the fact that it combusted nonetheless quickly made that fact moot. Finally reaching the last door to the safety of snow Sifler with the help of Darren sent out two simultaneous kicks, sending Aki flying into a small snow bank.

A harried expression on his face, Sifler took in a deep breathe trying to regain his composure even though he was involved with such a ...unique incident. Finally he raised his hand up, sending down hard on the back of Darren's head frothing with anger. "What the hell was that?!?! Darren! You can't be doing things like that! She's not really your sister! She's your servant and you have to treat her like such! Do anything you want, but take out all affection or feeling from your actions. Got it? She's nothing. Don't get attached to this filth. You may be sleeping in the same room but that doesn't necesarrily make you equal. Your beyond this girl remember that. Or I'll make you remember it for you," he threatened in a rare show of fury and force.

As his father raged at him, Darren shrunk back feeling fear from his father for once. This was bad, he never gets angry. What did I do to deserve this? This is all her fault he thought looking back at the flailing Aki, trying to quell the fire with snow. He took in every word that Sifler said, his heart hardening whenever it came to her from then on. He treated her like dirt while they were growing up, even though deep inside of him he had a very strong feeling of love towards his adopted maid sister thing. But never the less he clung on to his father's words without thought. Even on the day he saw a couple "wrestling" and tried to do the same to Aki a few years after. Sadly after the first few "wrestling" sessions their father caught them, sending her away finally. Darren didn't know what was wrong with the "wrestling" or that it was the reason for AKi's departure or the fact that she birthed his child nine months after. Darren simply didn't know, the ignorant fool.

oocVala said to endify it so here's me doing it. Sorry if I laid it on a bit thick there, btw.