"Um… Mistress…?"

"Hm? Yes?" And the conversation ended there, yet again. How many times was that now? Three? "Okay, stop. What is it that you want to say, Ariel? Just go ahead and say it."

"Yes…" Ariel responded. But again, nothing else followed. Guila didn't want to open her eyes to check on her. She desperately needed the rest, since the eye-stinging was still present. Luckily, she had the next best thing to a pillow, which was Ariel's paradoxically hard and yet soft abdomen. Thanks to that, she knew that her heart was racing and her body was getting hotter. Which was a sign that her body was recovering well. Had Guila been any younger though, she would've thought Ariel was feeling embarrassed.

"Just take your time, Ariel. I'm not moving, for another… eight minutes." A silence formed yet again. But Guila had long since stopped feeling choked by it. Maybe it's because she wasn't just listening to her own sounds now. It was actually a bit calming and reassuring. Or maybe, it was because they’d made up? Had they? Regardless, she was happy to stay like this for the meantime.

"Um so… why didn't Mistress meet with her mother?" And there it was. Finally the big question was out. If it wasn't so loaded, Guila might've actually felt the same audible anticipation she clearly did. Eyes now opened, she stared at Ariel’s expectant face. ‘So she was able to raise her head now, huh? Was the antidote working slowly or quickly?’ And she ended the pointless questions there. No matter how much Guila tried to distract herself with them, the fact remained that Ariel was expecting an answer.

‘Damn it.’ The very fact that she was asking in that way, meant that her condition had gotten worse. She must've been muttering entire conversations to new self, now. No, Guila told herself. That was just because of exhaustion. It had to be. ‘It has to be…’

"Look, I don't want to talk about it." The Vulpina's immediate disappointment was almost shocking to her. Then Ariel started squirming and shifting her weight. She didn't try to push Guila off, probably because she couldn’t, but the message was crystal clear.

"... it's uncomfortable…"

"You weren't complaining until now. But I'll get off, then." Just like that, the squirming stopped. Instead, she started sighing. Over and over again. But surprisingly, instead of getting annoyed, Guila found her obviousness somewhat endearing. For years, she'd been surrounded by duplicitous faces and venomous words, and from people much larger than her - literally and figuratively. And although she would never fault him for it, her dear husband always showed her little to none of his true thoughts. In light of that, Guila couldn't hate Ariel's clumsy prodding. But even so; "It's a long and boring story."

"That's okay. The longer we wait, the more I'll recover, right? It will be much easier to leave."

"When did you get so- I do not want to talk about it, alright? Plus, can't you already guess the answer from how I treated you?" Another silence, but then, Guila saw a smile form on Ariel's face. ‘Did she forget that I could see her? Or was it on purpose?’

"Oww… my face hurts so much…"

"Oh, don't you dare." Guila was about to get up, but then Ariel held her hand softly, without any strength behind her grip. Yet she'd been held in place, only able to watch Ariel's sadness through her one good eye.

"I'm sorry, Mistress… I didn't mean to make you mad." Ariel laid her head on her side, staring at their joined hands. "... I don't have a mama. My first memory was of Master giving me my name. Then the Learning Pods. But there, I was taught that family was the most important thing. That I should cherish it. Yet you said no. Even though you sounded like you were in so much pain." She paused, before failing to clench Guila's hand tighter. "I know Mistress will never love me, like she loves Master and Mistress' mama. But I still want to learn more about you. Can I, Mistress?"

The refusal seemed to get stuck in Guila's throat, but eventually, she laid her head back on Ariel’s stomach and sighed. "Fine. But… It's not a nice story." Her tall, fluffy ears immediately perked up in delight and she could only smile wryly at them. "When I married the Count, I did so with several conditions."

"Like what?"

"... I'll get to that. Actually, well… first off, my father was the Governor of Liforni. It was a polluted and overpopulated, but very prosperous Factory Planet. Thanks to that I grew up in luxury, even during the worst years of the war. But reality was catching up. One by one, Federation Planets were captured by the Empire forcing me to withdraw from the Academy and switch to homeschooling. A few years later, the Count's armada besieged us. The fighting between the Count and my father's fleet was fierce. Day and night, the skies were lit up by gunfire and lasers. All the while, shipwrecks and slag rained down, as ground forces engaged in urban warfare.

It only took a few weeks before riots erupted and the planet descended into anarchy. But even then, we still believed we could win. Father just needed to hold out until reinforcements arrived. That changed when my father's convoy was overrun. Not by Imperials, but by his own citizens. There were rumors that they offered him in exchange for peace and that the Count refused. The truth which I learned later, was that father was still aboard the Flagship Carrier, leading the defense. The convoy only had the Vice-Governor who was to assume command of the ground forces. But that still left only me and my mother. Inside a massive mansion with just a few guards, since many deserted after his supposed death. Even the few that remained fled, once mobs formed around the estate."

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Guila wasn't even sure when, but now she realized she'd been clenching back on Ariel's trembling hand. No, she was the one trembling.

"... All my life, I was told about how the Empire was an evil thing. That they enslaved non-Imperial men, and that women would be wed against their will, only to be abused for the rest of their lives. I even saw it happen in the news to one of my classmates…" Slowly, the UI began to fade again. But she bit her lower lip and drew blood, chasing away the creeping image of concrete forming around her. "... But you don't know how truly monstrous people can be, when they’re able to justify the things that they're about to do."

"’Oh, they were desperate.’” Guila said mockingly. “’The Governor is the reason the siege hasn't yet been lifted.’ They were just using us to convince papa to stop. ‘For the good of everyone’, they kept saying. When hitting the windows failed, they shot through them, instead. Then they rammed a car through the main entrance. Doors were broken into and the house was completely ransacked. All that I grew up with was utterly ruined, dresses, toys, books, gifts, everything. But thankfully, me and mama were safely hidden away in the panic room, where we could see and hear everything.

Things really got worse when they couldn’t find us. They knew we were in the house though, so they talked about how my grandpa was just lucky to colonize the planet first and that they deserved it just as much. Then they kept talking about how they were going to rape mama and use that as blackmail before finally chanting about how they'd also do it to me and force us to watch each other. They were spouting that, and so much more bullshit.

The very worst part however, was that they all would've followed through with it. You could see it in their eyes, they weren’t just threatening us. They were animals. Mama tried to hide it all from me, but she couldn't cover my eyes and ears forever, and we needed the cameras to know when it would be safe to leave. But… luckily... we didn't have to stay there for long. Because we were finally defeated two days later. Father's Carrier was crippled and after that, most of the fleet was destroyed or fled. When the Count came to collect his spoils, he and his elite Praetorian Guard cleared away the mob that had gathered, slaughtering most of them in the process, and then ransacked our home even more. I didn't even know why, until they surrounded the fireplace and tore it off, revealing our bunker door.” Guila paused, letting out a wry chuckle before assuming a more ‘instructive’ tone.

“Did the learning pods teach you that it’s Imperial tradition for the women of the defeated ruler to be among the treasures claimed? Because that’s how Wartime Law works, apparently it ensures peace in their conquered territories. But I don't think anyone believes that was the reason behind why it was made law. Of course, mama cried desperately as she held me close. She kept telling me that she was sorry. She begged me to forgive her and papa. That they failed. But… I never once believed that, either. So I turned to the man at the front and rose to my feet, though he still towered over me. And…I told him to only take me.” She felt a cringing smile form on her face, as she recalled just how stupid that was in hindsight.

“Mama's nails dug into my cheeks as she tried to shut me up. Then two of the soldiers exited their power armor and decided to yank her away. She cried and screamed, clawed and fought... I tried so hard to ignore her." There was no way either of them could've known the face that Guila was making at this point and maybe that was for the best. "When the Count told me to explain myself… I just said that mama would never love him. That her beauty would turn ugly while with him. He would've just ruined the most beautiful, brilliant woman in the galaxy."

"But I was different. I could still be fully devoted to him with more than enough room to grow, all he needed to do was listen to a few requests. And he did. That's why I'm married to him. That's why I love him, why I belong to him." The twenty minute mark had passed long before Guila was finished recounting. But she couldn't just stop then, Ariel had asked to learn more, and she’d decided to oblige her with full honesty. Then, while she was wiping her welling tears away with her wrists, Ariel sat up, clearly unsatisfied.

"Shouldn't that be even more of a reason to meet Mistress' mama, then?" She asked, while seemingly staring into Guila's eyes. Even though she couldn't actually see anything. "You loved her so much that you gave yourself up to someone who you believed would only do you harm. That's… why not? Why not tell her that you’re fine? That you’re loved and that she no longer has to worry in the same way you worried for her?"

"You make it sound like I was the bad guy.” Guila chuckled, but the ache in her chest reasserted itself. “Of course, I’ve asked myself that question. So many times, but… look, maybe I was, but saving my family wasn't the only reason I followed through with our agreement. In a way, you're right. I valued mama’s safety much more than I valued my own. That's the only reason I did what I did that day. But the Count also spared my home and kept my family safe. Then they prospered more than they ever did before. He kept his every word to me, and…" Guila bit her lip and inhaled deeply, before continuing. "... He made my dream a reality."

"Think about it. The most accomplished man in the Empire, the man who went on to end a century of war, that caliber of man, listened to a completely delusional girl and didn't just turn on her when he got what he wanted, while she had nothing else to grab onto. I had to devote myself to him. Not just because it was what I promised, but because he wanted and trusted me enough to follow through on all his promises..." She breathed in deep then hung her head low, before pulling away from Ariel’s hand and pushed against the railing to stand up. "Don’t tell him this, but if I met my mama that day. I wouldn't have been able to stay devoted. I would’ve betrayed his trust. Because even after all he's given me, I still love mama more than I could ever love anyone else. Including him."

"But Mistress didn't need her mama anymore, right?" And to that final question, Guila gave a sad, forced smile.

"I did. I still do. And I'll always need her… you can move now, right? We should go. And... just call me Guila, from now on. Also..." She paused, then sighed and placed a hand on Ariel's head - rubbing the space between her fluffy ears. "Don’t worry too much about my relationship with the Count. You’ll get your chance to fall in love with him, too."