The Pride of a Slave Ch. 03

Thanks to my editor SkepticalHeretic who is an awesome editor and has not only been editing my work but has been asking questions and encouraging me. I hope everyone likes this one, and please keep rating and commenting, its pretty awesome to be getting such an amazing response from everyone. Also the reasons why the chapters are taking longer to come out is because of the approval process for Literotica, I'm submitting them, it just takes a bit for Literotica to get them posted.

Anyway thanks for the suggestions and comments.

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I woke up the next morning and skipped breakfast entirely, opting, instead, to go to class early and reread the chapter and try to answer more of my own questions. I had unpacked my art supplies last night and after weeping irrationally over them, I tucked them into the very nice carrying case that came with them. I had to carry them to my art class and drop them off.

I escaped out of the Palace unseen, quickly made my way to the gates. I smiled at the guards who greeted me warmly and asked me how my day went. I thanked them for their directions telling them how much time they saved me, which seemed to make the guards even brighter. They let me through quickly and bid me another good luck as I raced across the grass.

I stopped at the art class open door and saw that the professor was there sketching in a pad. I knocked softly and he looked up smiling, "Ah, you are the first one here. Lets have a look at those supplies so I can decide if you need to go back and get better ones."

I nodded and handed him the case and canvas bag. He whistled and nodded appreciably going through all my supplies very delicately. He complimented me on my guidance counselors choice of art supplies and directed me to a locker where I could lock the supplies in safely.

He removed a box of charcoal, erasers, shaders, and the small sketchpad and handed them to me before letting me put the supplies in the locker, "You need to sketch every day, that's everyone's daily assignment, one sketch daily, doesn't even have to be good. And you get to show it to the class for critique, before begin our actual work."

I nodded tucking the pad, and pencil case worth of things into my bag. I thanked him and left for first period, spending the rest of my time attached to my tablet answering questions that I had prepared for class, without even having to ask them myself. And that was how the rest of the week went.

I avoided Dimitri, Ryder, Victor, and Mariah as much as possible. I kept myself busy studying in my room until dinner, in which I would sit away from them and would eat sparingly, mostly because Delilah, as I found her name to be, was a frequent dinner guest. I stopped eating breakfast and lunch, mostly because I hated seeing Delilah first thing in the morning, and I didn't eat lunch because I used the time to sketch instead.

It was towards the end of the week that I noticed my hands wouldn't stop shaking and as I struggled to take notes in my third class of the day I heard feet running down the hall in a frantic hurry. I felt my stomach drop as everyone froze for a moment and then continued the lecture. I didn't pay attention however, as I realized Dimitri and Delilah, both, weren't in class.

I stood up suddenly, pausing only long enough to let the dizzy spell subside and to apologize to my professor, and leaving my tablet and bag in class I ran at a break neck speed toward the Quad. I burst out of the doors and down the steps only vaguely aware of the crowd there, instead all I could hear were the thuds.

I forced my way to the front and watched with horror as Dimitri and Ryder wrestled on the ground, each getting a chance to pin the other and land some very violent blows. I looked around to see if anyone would stop it and my eyes landed on Delilah who was standing off to the side grinning and giggling behind her hand.

The two stood up and backed away from each other and with what little energy I had I yelled, "STOP IT!!"

Neither one heard me, of course, they never heard me when they were this mad. So I jumped into the middle of the fight, realizing that they must be pretty far gone, because they didn't even notice me. I realized I only had a few seconds more before they killed each other. I ran at Ryder and slammed my fist into his left ear as he yelped and fell down. I turned to land an elbow into Dimitri's left, middle, rib, causing him to stop his charge and collapse as well gasping from pain. Knowing that they could both focus I slapped the pair of them across the face, finally gaining their full attention.

"Are you kidding me?" I was yelling at the top of my lungs at them, "Look at you, look at each other. What the hell was so important that you did this?"

I turned and pointed at the Delilah who still hadn't stopped smiling, "You did this to each other FOR THAT?!? Look at her, she's nothing but glad you two are trying to kill each other. What is so wonderful about that disgusting creature that you would do this? And on top of that don't think I haven't noticed how its been this last week. I don't see you at all, and when I do you, BOTH OF YOU, pretend I don't exist."

Delilah stepped forward, "You don't have any right..."

I was so violently angry I didn't give her a chance to say anything instead I turned to her and stalked towards her, her forward motion stopping instantly and she began to back away from me, "And you, I don't care whether you are sleeping with the King himself, I never want to see you within ten feet of these two in ANYTHING but the academic setting. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?!?"

She nodded quickly and ran away clutching her chest as she went. I turned and looked at the group that were staring at me opened mouth, "AND YOU GOOD FOR NOTHING BUNCH CAN BEAT IT AS WELL. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES, LETTING YOUR FUTURE LEADERS DO THIS!!"

The crowd dispersed quickly and I returned my fury to the two princes, my energy careening out of control. I grabbed Ryder's bruised ear and pinched the skin on Dimitri's bruised rib and dragged the pair of them to the main building. I didn't have to say anything as students opened the doors for me and I dragged the limping Princes along with me to the medical office. I ignored the nurse and yanked Ryder by the ear until he sat quietly on the cot I put him on and walking across the room did the say to Dimitri.

I turned to the nurse who had become very upset, "Where is the phone."

"Look I know who you are, but you have no right..."

I cut her off with the commanding voice I used on the two princes, "I ASKED WHERE THE PHONE IS!!!"

She gasped and stepped backwards, pointing shakily to a small door off to the side. I turned to the Princes and glared at each of them, "Do not move a freaking muscle, you hear me!!!"

The both nodded and I stormed over to the phone and called Victors emergency number.

"Hello?"

"Hi, its Seraphina, you need to call Mariah, and both of you need to come over here and sort your sons out."

I heard Victor sigh and before he could say anything, "It was over that stupid girl you all seem to be so doting over. Maybe next time you will think before you pit two Princes against each other over a stupid, vapid, female."

And with that final scolding I slammed the phone down and took a deep breath, releasing the tension I used when dealing with these sort of situations. After a few deep breaths I stepped out of the office feeling very light headed and wobbly. The nurse caught me as I felt the world tilt and sat me down quickly in a chair.

Both Princes made to stand up but I glared at both of them and they both sat back down and didn't move. The nurse took my blood pressure and temperature and then looked at me closely, suddenly flashing a light in my eyes and checking my throat.

When she was finished she crossed her arms and looked down at me, "Is there anything I should know?"

I looked at her confused and noticed Dimitri and Ryder both looking at her warily, "I have no idea what you are talking about."

"I don't know much about slaves and your habits, but starvation for any reason is not good."

I shook my head, "I'm not starving myself, I just, haven't been hungry really. And then these two idiots were fighting over Delilah, and her being at every dinner and breakfast like she lived there..."

I felt a rant coming on and I felt too weak to stop it, "And no one in that stupid palace except for Lady Alekzaner and the servants could see through that girls bullshit. Do you have any idea what its like to see your best friends, two people who you love like family fight over a creature LIKE THAT. My mom died two days before I came here, two days. I moved into the Palace and had NO ONE there. I had no one to talk to about my mom, except my slave friend who is paired, so I don't get to talk to her much.

Even the King was drooling over that stupid girl, EVEN THE ALPHA WAS. I felt like the only person in the world who saw her for what she really was. And I was overwhelmed with the work, the reading, and I had so many questions but I had no one to ask because those two idiots over there, they were too busy partying, or pinning after Delilah. I was alone, and...and I just wasn't hungry okay?!? It all tasted like dirt when I ate it, okay?"

I pulled my knees to me and buried my face in my arms, shutting out the entire world. I stayed like that until I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up into Victor's concerned face. I smiled weakly and nodded towards the Princes, resting my head back down and closing my eyes. I head Mariah a moment later and she touched my shoulder and I looked up nodded and rested my head back on my arms.

This time the Nurse took over and told the King and Alpha what had happened, "...Their marks will fade and be gone by tomorrow, all except the bruising on their pressure points that Seraphina, here, dealt them, rightfully so. However, its her I'm truly worried about. She hasn't been eating."

I heard Mariah huff, "Of course she has, we see her at every dinner."

I heard the nurse cough softly, "Um, yes, well she sat there and told me she hasn't been eating a full meal in almost a week. Which isn't unusual for grieving humans, however, because she hasn't eaten she is severely anemic. My suggestion is to take this weekend, and to make sure she gets food in her, start with broth so her stomach doesn't reject it right away and then more solid foods by Saturday. All three of them have been excused and the teachers have sent their belongings and assignments to the office."

The nurse bustled off and I felt warm hands touch my shoulder again and I looked up again into Mariah's face, it was pinched with worry now, as she grabbed my chin and forced me to look straight at her.

"We didn't even notice, Victor, look at the poor thing." And he came over and sighed when he looked at me. I closed my eyes and felt Mariah softly release my chin so I could put it back in my arms. I felt brutally weak and when I tried to stand I had to sit right back down.

Dimitri scooped me up and I snuggled into his arms reaching up and stroking the back of his neck. It was a sign of my affection for him, I always did it after I beat him up like this, when I was younger, "Hey Ryder, take her please."

I didn't bother to open my eyes as I was switched into Ryder's very warm arms. It was a lullaby with Ryder. I hummed it to him, in the same way I stroked the back of Dimitri's neck, to reassure him I still loved him and that I was sorry. Ryder groaned and walked over to Mariah, "Mom take her."

She chuckled, "Oh, no you don't. You both will deal with your guilt, look at her, the poor thing, half dead and she's trying to reassure you idiots."

She snorted and I could hear her put distance between herself and Ryder. I felt Ryder squeeze me a little tighter to him, "Stop humming Sera, I know you still care. I'm not mad at you."

I nodded sighed, stopping my humming and falling into a deep sleep. I felt cool arms replace warm ones and I patted his chest, not having the strength to reassure him properly. He sighed and hugged me to him much as Ryder did, "I'm sorry Sera, you should be mad, even if you aren't."

I cracked my eyes open, "Oh, I'm mad, but I still love you." I said it softly and closed my eyes again never noticing the very pained look on Dimitri's face.

It felt like I slept for a long time as I woke up and stretched my sore body. My head was fuzzy and my stomach growled like an animal possessed. I sat up and looked around, curious as to how I got into Dimitri's room instead of my own. I heard the running water in the bath stop and I laid back and watched Dimitri come out of the bathroom, wearing nothing but a black pair of soft, sweat pants.

He noticed I was up immediately and sat next to me taking my hand and squeezing it. I squeezed back and leaned forward and touched his side, seeing the black, and green bruise I had left there.

I touched it softly, "Sorry Di." I looked up and saw that his blue eyes were glowing slightly and he was staring at me in a way that made my stomach flip.

He leaned forward slightly and his gaze dropped from my eyes to my lips and I suddenly held my breath, my heart quickening. Suddenly, he turned his head and stood up backing away from me a few paces. I looked at him differently this time, noticing the defined muscles on his arms and stomach. He caught me looking.

I flushed and turned away, "I think I just became aware you aren't my little friend anymore.

Dimitri nodded, "I noticed that about a week ago, when you walked out in your undergarments. I never noticed that at some point, you stopped being my androgynous friend, and became a beautiful woman."

I blushed, "You think I'm beautiful?"

Dimitri nodded and then walked into his closet and put on a shirt. I sighed and leaned back trying to understand what had just happened. I felt Dimitri next to me and I turned just in time for his lips to press into mine. He stood up rigid and stared at me for a moment then closed his eyes and with a small shake of his head, turned and walked out of the room.

I touched my lips, still feeling his cool lips against mine and shuttered. I didn't understand my bodies reaction, I have kissed Dimitri many times. More often than not it was on the cheek, but this time the kiss felt different. I knew he meant to kiss my cheek, and that I accidentally turned my head, and that wasn't surprising, but both his reaction and mine were what was different.

My body had warmed up, even long after the Dimitri had left and I couldn't get rid of this amazing electrical feeling that seemed to correlate with how fast my heart was beating. I laid back and threw my arm over my eyes, trying to reason out what had just happened and how I had reacted. With little reasoning and instead of working out the problem, I kept day dreaming of Dimitri shirtless and became even more disturbed by my dreams.

I sat up again and got out of bed slowly, feeling a wave of dizziness wash over me before being able to walk. Before I could do more than straighten up Dimitri was back at the door with a tray in his hand, "You should be warned the Chef is very upset with you."

I looked at him confused and watched him walk the food through the bedroom door into his living room, and set it on the table in front of the couch. He grabbed my hand softly and guided me to the couch, and sat beside me once I settled in. I looked at the food warily, not seeing anything even moderately appetizing.

Dimitri saw me hesitate and sighed, "Why aren't you eating Sera?"

I shrugged, "I'm all honestly, nothing seems to appeal to me much anymore."

He nodded, "That's how it was with me too, when my mom died, remember? You used to sit on me and shove porridge down my throat?"

I looked away from him and the food, pulled my knees up and wrapped my arms around them and rested my chin on my arms, "I'm not hungry."

Dimitri sighed, "Well, you can eat voluntarily or I can call Ryder in and we can pin you down and feed you."

I turned and glared at him, "You wouldn't dare."

He shrugged, "Oh yes I would."

I snatched a piece of cheese off of the plate and nibbled on it, and Dimitri leaned back satisfied for now. We sat in silence for a moment then I felt Dimitri shift his weight and lean back again. Since when had I become so aware of him? I felt like I had a Dimitri radar all of a sudden, when he shifted I attuned and adjusted to it. It was weird, and unsettling and it did nothing for my confusion and appetite.

I cleared my throat getting his attention, "So what happened after I fell asleep?"

Dimitri ran his hand through his hair, sighing and settling it into the palms of his hands, "Basically we aren't allowed to go to parties anymore. I guess Father was allowing us to go to them on the basis that we stayed together, and that we hadn't been fighting."

I sighed and nibbled on the cheese a little more, "What were you two fighting about exactly?"

Dimitri shifted uncomfortably, "Delilah."

"No kidding, but what exactly."

Dimitri leaned back and sighed, "She was paying too much attention to Ryder and it upset me, and unfortunately Ryder felt she was spending too much time with me."

I shook my head confused, "What was the appeal?"

He chuckled, "I don't think you would understand, really."

I sighed and rolled my eyes, "It shall always be an elusive thing to me then. She was quite horrible, and no one, not even your father seemed to notice."

He sighed frustrated jerking his arm through his hair, "What is your problem with her? Are you jealous or something?"

I turned in the couch and looked at him shocked, "Well sure, at first I was, when I saw her the next morning, knowing she spent the night with you. There she was with you and Ryder and your families and she looked perfect there. She looked like she belonged there because in all honestly someone like her does and will belong there. Why wouldn't I be jealous of that? But beyond her being immortal, I most definitely wasn't jealous. You really didn't notice it at all, did you?"

Dimitri glared at me, "Noticed what?" I rolled my eyes and stood up to leave but Dimitri caught my wrist and pulled me back down, "First, you aren't done eating, second stop running and just tell me."

I threw my hands up, "She hates humans, and in particular me. She changed you the whole time you were with her. One minute we were best friends, the next you are pretending you don't even know I exist. She would cut me off every time I tried to talk, and acted like she lived here and on top of that she kept commenting on the company at the table whenever I was there. She felt wrong Dimitri, she was just this ball of awful energy, walking around wrapped around you and then Ryder."

I pulled my knees to my chest again and hid my face in my arms. Dimitri stayed silent and I spoke into my arms, " When your mom died, I stayed with you every day and night. I sat with you and talked and even stole my moms drawings of her so that you could sleep with them. I stayed with you when you didn't want to get out of bed, and fed you when you wouldn't eat. And...and...my mom dies and the next day you bring home some girl and she never leaves. You ignore me and the worst part it was because I embarrassed you right?"

I looked away from him and out the darkening window, "For the first time you made me feel like a slave. I wasn't worth your attention, help, or even friendship. What Prince could stand to have a friend that's a slave, right? I was sinking, and you weren't there!"

My breath hitched as I felt the urge to cry, I rubbed the back of my neck, the raised flesh of the brand feeling like fire against my fingers. Dimitri didn't say anything, just sat silently and I sat wrapped up around myself finally unable to hold it in any longer I whispered softly, "I want to go home, but I don't have a home anymore."