XXX

DAE

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Dae sit by the table looking dazed... She couldn't sleep well last night, because the images of the princess on top of her looking so wild kept playing on her mind... T'was the first time she saw that look on the princess, her face flushed, her eyes blown wide... It's... Almost sadistic, she enjoys it when she cries... Why is that? But then again she squirms in her seat, finding herself wet again when thinking of what the process did to her.... She couldn't look at the candles the same anymore... Every time she saw one she remembers what the princess did to her, and it made her throb... She has to squeeze her legs together to get some relief.

When that happened yesterday she thought it would be painful, like how it happened with the king... She thought she would be rip apart again because the candle was big and long... But she wrong, she hadn't expected to feel good, to feel hot.

"Are you alright lady Dae?" She jolt when lady Eleanor suddenly touched her hand.

"Huh? Oh yeah, yeah. I am fine." She smiles at her and looked around the table only to see everyone looking at her with, she suddenly felt anxious... She wasn't aware that it was a custom for the concubines to eat together in breakfast and in dinner. Lady Eleanor said it was the king's order.

"Is the food not to your liking? We could go get you something that you like?" Lady Eleanor offered to her.

"Quit pampering her Eleanor, she's not a fucking baby." Lady Dara spoke, glaring at her, she swallowed and looked averted her gaze.

" Now, now lady Dara, no need for you to be aggressive." Lady Eleanor stated before putting a cut of the bacon she has on her plate to Dae's plate.

" Eat plenty my lady... You'll need it." She said with a wink making Dae smile, the welcoming she received from the concubines weren't exactly warm... Some have already shown their disapproval of her, while some ignores her... And the others like Lady Eleanor and lady Helena have greeted her warmly.

" Forgive her... Lady Dara have always been the jealous type." Lady Helena whispered to her. She nods her head and smiled to her before taking a bite of the bacon.

"What's our agenda for today?" Lady Shawna asked Lady Giovanette who stood as the head of the harem.

"His Majesty won't be joining us for now... He's busy looking for his humored golden bastard. So our afternoon is free... But we are to plan the annual Harem party." The table suddenly grew loud with different opinion of disapprovement.

"Again? Could we still handle that? The kingdom's coffer is almost running out of money because of the war." Lady Eloise stated, she was the one handling the finances of the harem.

" I didn't have a new dress!" Lady Clementine exclaimed.

" Maybe we should move it?" Lady Shawna suggested. Lady Giovanette raises her hand to stop them from speaking.

" Let's ask the opinion of the newbie.... What do you think lady Dae? What do you think we should do?" She tensed when lady Giovanette asked her, why her? What does she know about this?

" We shouldn't really be asking her... She's new." Lady Natalya suggested looking at her.

" What does a savage princess know about this kind of matter? I bet they didn't even do this in their place." The other ladies laughed at lady Hilda's joke.

" That's enough now." Lady Eloise stops them from further more humiliating Dae.

"Well it was true, what could she give us? She's not build nor trained for this." Lady Yvette voiced out before taking a sip of her drink. But they were ignored.

"So what do you say?" Lady Giovanette asked again.

"The annual Harem party is held every year, inside the harem... It was the only time of the year where the Noble lords and lady are allowed to go inside to witness the party... It mainly consist of gathering, another excuse to further more pursue political pursuit and as well as to make proposal for the noble lords children with our own. Other than that it's just basically wasting money." Lady Ceris explained to her without looking. Everyone returned their gaze to her awaiting her answer.

"Well if it's just wasting money... Why not do it with another purpose?" She suggested making the other raised their brow.

"Such as what? Going around town giving goods?" Everyone laughed at lady Clementine's words but it actually gave her an idea.

"Well... Yeah. Why not make it a charity? Held an annual party to gather more profits that could benefit the charities you have... Princess Roshanne told me that each of you has charity that you handle." Everyone went silent after she finished talking, they stared at her dumbfounded... What? Was it bad? She noticed the small twitch in lady Giovanette's face, was she suppressing a smile? She thought.

" Well who would have thought you had something like that in your mind?" Lady Eloise spoke sounding quite impressed before smiling.

"It looks like you have been listening well to your studies. Well done" She added before nodding her head in approval.

" W-what? What so good about that? Everyone could come up with that idea!" Lady Clementine exclaimed looking pissed.

" And she got the idea from me!" She added.

"Well if anyone could come up with that idea why didn't you tell me that? Instead you decided to complain like a bitch." Lady Giovanette spoke making lady Clementine shut her mouth, she glares at Dae.

"Let's try that." Lady Giovanette stated and nods her head in approval, Lady Eleanor looked at her with a pleased smile and congratulated her. Lady Ceris didn't show much of a reaction but she swear she saw her lips twitch slightly upward... Dae smiles suddenly feeling good about herself... At least she was earning some favors from the others... That's a good sign right?

Their breakfast from then on went fine, nothing much happened, after they were done eating the concubines went on their own way to do whatever task it is they were going to do and Dae found herself Wondering around the harem palace with nothing to do... Her lesson wouldn't start until next week... She was on the part about the kingdom's history, from their first kings and queens to the latest... She had learned a lot from her stay in the kingdom. And she whish to learn more about it... She likes the story of the Goddess Riyanon, a warrior Goddess who fought the darkness that emerges from the north. She loves particularly the part where her lover was introduced, a woman who's locked in her tower in Eastern border.

Dae smiles remembering the details of the story, how one day when the Goddess was taking a stroll from the banks of the river she came across a lonely old Tower, a top it was a young girl... Locked by her mother... And was guarded by a mean beast with three heads of a lion and body of wolf and wings of an eagle, with seven horns and a tail of serpent... The goddess fell in love the moment she saw the lonely girl and decided to save her from the beast.

The story reminded Dae of her silly little dreams, of how she dreamed of a prince coming to save her from her tower... She may have been a foolish girl back then... But still life was easier, she didn't have to deal with an old rotting man and her father's schemes. She didn't have to worry about who she will poison and such just to satisfy him.

Though she knows that she had already met the Goddess of her own, who will save her and give her the freedoms she yearns for... But still there is no guarantee that everything will be just fine.

In her musing Dae didn't notice that she was venturing further into the harem palace, she didn't notice that she was already wondering towards the area where she wasn't supposed to be... Gladly someone pulled her back. She squeal and almost topple down, gladly the one who catches her was strong.

"Easy, easy." She heard lady Eleanor's gentle voice, she looks up just in time to see her smiling, she smiled back at her and straighten her posture, only then did she noticed lady Ceris standing behind lady Eleanor. It seems that the two women and a very close friends, she often sees them together wherever they go

She envies that friendship.

"Mind where you are going sweetling, you almost got yourself into trouble." Lady Eleanor stated before pulling her with her... Dae looked behind her to see a extravagant looking hall... It was the only hall made of marbled floor and golden pillars.

"What's in there?" She asked lady Eleanor.

"That's the quarter where the senior concubines resides... You and the others aren't allowed their." Dae was surprised to hear lady Ceris speak to her. Her reaction made lady Eleanor giggles.

"Cece is a kind woman, she's just shy." Cece? Was that her nickname? It's cute... The nickname made her giggle but she quickly choke on it when lady Ceris glares at her. She cleared her throat and looked away instead.

"Why aren't we allowed their?" She asked lady Eleanor, making sure not to look at lady Ceris direction because she could still feel her glare on her.

"Well... The harem is divided into two groups, the Senior members and the Junior.... You, and I as well as the other younger concubines belong to the junior group, while the senior is composed by the older members and that is Lady Giovanette, Lady Eloise and Ceris over here, though she is the newest to be added. The quarter of the senior concubines are off limits to us. The law was established way back then... But I don't know why." Lady Eleanor fill in for her... Dae nods her head.

" It was because the senior members are from well known families who has stronger ties with the king, they belong to the inner fraction of the nobles which are the known avid supporter of the king... Their families are known powerful nobles." Lady Ceris filled in for her. This time she wasn't glaring at Dae so it made her relax.

" So... The harem has also distinctions of members inside? Were the two fraction treated differently?" She curiously asked, Lady Eleanor looked at Lady Ceris before answering her questions.

" Well in terms of treatment from the servants, no, there are no difference, but... Senior members often and will treat us.... Differently. It's like they sees as pet rather than equals." Lady Eleanor stated which earn her a glare from lady Ceris.

" Not all." Lady Ceris added before looking at Dae.

"Well yes not all... Because lady Cece here is kind... Not like the others." Lady Ceris couldn't help but sigh, it seems like Cece was a nickname that lady Eleanor came up, but lady Ceris would rather much prefer it to be used when it's just the two of them.

"So where are you heading?" She asked them.

"At the Harem's garden... Well the inner garden. The one you see outside was outer... We have the inner. Right here." The three of them stops walking when they reached a golden gate with two lion heads.

"The garden originally belong to the late queen dowager, she was the one behind the construction of this garden... You see the former queen was actually not like our queen... The former queen has a good relationship with the concubines." Lady Eleanor sums up for her.

" The queen? What happened to her?" She asked lady Eleanor as they waited for lady Ceris to open the gate.

" Oh her?... She loved her son too much that it caused her,her own sanity when he died." Lady Eleanor shakes her head.

" Though I could understand what she's been through and it was very difficult considering myself who is a mother too.... But that woman..." She sighed and shakes her head.

" She loves him dearly... The boy was good, kind... But he was naive and weak. Not like his sister." Lady Eleanor then pulled her with her when the gate was Opened.

" The prince was born weak, so people around him treated him with more care. Compared to his older siblings causing for him to be naive." Lady Ceris joined in their conversation, Dae took the time to look around, the garden was very much the same as the one that they called the outer garden.

" What's so special about this?" She asked... The two woman looked at her, they shared a look before smiling down at her... Lady Eleanor loops her hand around her.

"Just wait... You'll see." She told her.  Dae nods her head and listen as the two woman talked, well now that they are going deeper into the garden only then did she noticed it has trees compared to the one outside.

" I already told your son not to go." She heard lady Eleanor stated, clear agitation could be heard in her voice.

" You know the boy, he will not listen." Lady Ceris answered.

" The war is not for him." She grumbles before looking back at Dae.

" Sorry about that." She smiles.

" No it's okay." She told her watching as lady Eleanor shakes her head.

" You'll understand this kind of woe when you yourself have become a mother." Lady Eleanor stated. Dae's smile falters... Oh

.. she thought. A mother? She looked away from lady Eleanor, ever since she could remember, Dae had fear the thought of birth

.. because of the things she heard from her maids. They said birth was a terrible thing, it was painful and Dae... Well Dae could not imagine popping out a kid. How was that supposed to happen? How was a big thing like that come out of her?

" Are you alright? You suddenly look pale?" Lady Eleanor inquired looking worriedly at her. Dae smiles and shakes her head.

" I'm fine." She told them. Hiding her fear behind her smile but Lady Ceris saw right through it.

"You fear the idea of birth? Don't you.?" She didn't answer and merely stare at the lady wide eyed, this earned her a sympathetic look from lady Eleanor.

"Oh we understand, we too dreaded the idea of giving birth before. But it's something you'll be able to overcome one day." Lady Eleanor stated with a sweet smile before patting her hand for comfort.  Dae only smile, but it didn't wash away the feeling of fear..... Though Dae's steps falters when she heard the unmistakable sound of water... A running water, before she could asked Lady Eleanor quickly pulled her and run, Dae was Forced to run with her, she looks behind her to see Lady Ceris shaking her head but there was a faint smile on her lips. Dae turned towards lady Eleanor and sure! At the end of the trail, there was a river. And it was covered with such beauty that it left her feeling breathless.

"This... This is the difference of the  inner garden." Lady Eleanor told her before she let go of her hand.

"Come let's take a bath." Before she could protest lady Eleanor was already heading towards the water, but before she could dip in Dae was startled when she started removing her clothes.

"Uhh... Lady Eleanor?" She asked uncertainly watching as the woman finally removed the last of her clothes leaving her in all her naked glory, Dae's face heat up, upon witnessing the naked glory of lady Eleanor, her alabaster skin makes her glow underneath the soft light of the sun, and her white hair makes her look like a pear... Her nipples were in a shade of light pink, whom Dae had noted were very similar to the princess from when she was helping her bathe.

"Eleanor... How many time would I tell you not to leave your clothes on the ground." She heard lady Ceris scold her, but lady Eleanor only giggles, half of her body was now submerged to the water. Lady Ceris picked up the clothes that lady Eleanor left and hand it on the nearby tree brunch... Dae watched with her mouth agape as lady Ceris followed suit. When lady Ceris noticed her staring she raised her brow.

"What?" Dae shakes her head and quickly looked away.

"The weather is good... It's a good chance to take a bath in the river... We hadn't had this chance in a few months, won't you be joining?" Dae shakes her head, no she would rather much just sit.

"Suit yourself." Lady Ceris stated before making her way into the water.... Lady Ceris compared to lady Eleanor has milky smooth skin, and her hair was black making her stand out amongst the other concubines, lady Ceris has also a slender figure and was taller than the other, she has this aura of mysteriousness that could draw everyone, a complete opposite of lady Eleanor.

While lady Ceris was a nonchalant lady, lady Eleanor was a bubbly woman, Dae had not seen her once without a smile on her lips, she has this glowing light around her, it also drew people closer to her... Among all the Concubines, Lady Eleanor was the most optimistic. Her musing was quickly cut short though when she got startled by what they did next....

"Huh?!" She couldn't help but exclaimed when the two woman began kissing, intimately... Dae's face heated up but she couldn't bring herself to look away, one moment they were swimming, the next they were kissing!!! Dae looked around the place! What if someone sees them?! Is that even allowed? She looks back at the two women, and though they are still kissing, she noticed that lady Ceris was looking at her and there was a knowing smirk on her lips. Dae watched them hypnotized... Was that something they normally do? Does they do it too in front of the others???

That she do not know.