Arunika abruptly looked up at Aoi with tears welling in her eyes. Her face was a bright red that made her skin glow. "*sniff* You'll really marry me? I... I never thought anyone would with me being an orphan."
"Of course! How could you being an orphan have anything to do with people not wanting to pamper you?! You're beautiful. I mean... look at this hair alone." Aoi grabbed a lock of Arunika's wheat-colored hair, brought it to her nose to lightly sniff it, and gave it a subtle kiss. It had a natural silky feel to it and smelled like the sea.
Arunika shyly turned her head slightly and averted her gaze away from Aoi. Aoi then grabbed her cheeks that felt as smooth as polished jade and felt so tender it would make one want to subconciously squeeze them. "Look at me Aru-chan. You are a beautiful person. You brought me back after I almost drowned and passed out and then you looked after me for a few days.
That alone is enough to make me respect and like you. I've had lovers in the past, but never to the point someone would willingly keep me company and watch over me like this."
"Wh- why do you keep calling me 'Aru-chan'? Hehe, it makes me sound like a kid." Arunika wiped the tears from her eyes and gave a cute smile that shot an arrow right to Aoi's heart.
"What? You don't like it? It's a term of endearment where I'm from, and it's a cute name that suits the cute you. Plus, don't forget that I'm 5 years your senior." Aoi gave her most charmingly devilish that could make anyone of any gender fall for her and placed one of her hands on the bed behind Arunika while keeping the other on her cheek. She then leaned forward a little and placed her forehead against Arunika's.
"Listen. I don't know what the big deal is about being an orphan, and you know I'm not from here. Where I'm from it doesn't matter your background, ethnicity, religious views, or any of that. All that matters is both people love each other. Yes, not every marriage is like that where I'm from, but a majority of them are."
"Or- orphans are looked down on if their parents die before reaching adulthood because they're forced out of their homes to accommodate for other families in the villages and are made to wander the land without a proper home. We become travelers against our will and can never stay in one place for too long. Even until adulthood the stigma remains with us."
"*gasp* That's one hell of a brutal treatment to give innocent children! Why don't they build orphanages?"
"The Emperor's grandfather, during his rule, proclaimed that it's a waste of the royal treasury and shut down all of them within the empire and enacted the current law. Some of the orphans at that time tried to settle and when word got out to the nobility, they proceeded to slaughter most of the children in the settlement to set an example because they were unlawfully living on their land. We orphans can't stay in one place for too long and my time at this location is ending tomorrow."
Aoi backed away from Arunika, mouth agape, and her hands were clenching the bed sheets so tightly it turned her knuckles white. She clenched her teeth and said, "I've seen and heard of some messed up things done to children, but that wins the grand prize! Those children could have had a future and could have benefitted the empire more by letting them live. They could have become farmers, businessmen, or anything so long as they had the determination to work towards their own futures. And all of that could have been a boon to the empire."
"Well... we don't recieve education because we're commoners and the likelihood that we'll amount to anything in the nobility's eyes only matters if our parents are there to guide us and we inherit our parent's jobs. I heard we can't choose our own professions because the nobles think we'll threaten their positions if we can learn what they do."
Aoi shook her head and sighed. 'Such backwards thinking will only speed up the decline of this empire. It'll only last for maybe the next two generations before this whole kingdom collapses.'
"Haah, well that doesn't matter now because now you have me. I obviously don't have a home here so I'll just end up being a traveller like you at any rate. I'd be glad if you'd have me. I'm in a land I know nothing of and I'll need a cute experienced guide like yourself!"
Seeing Aoi smile so beautifully made Arunika's heart rate increase dramatically. Aoi then continued, "That and I can guarantee that the education I've received is leagues beyond theirs and can already tell that I'm smarter and more educated than them by far, so I'll teach you what I know! I can even teach you to speak my native language. I just hope your written language for the common tongue here is the same as where I'm from so I can teach you how to read and write."
Arunika was dumbfounded by Aoi's determination to educate her in something only nobles could obtain. "N-no, it's enough just to have you by my side. I wouldn't dream of learning anything. If the noble's heard anything about it our lives would be at risk."
Aoi sighed, leaned back and looked up at the ceiling of the cottage and said, "How about this? I'll still teach you what I know to the best of my abilities, but we'll do it slowly and discreetly so no one would ever know. That and I can tell this empire isn't that important in your eyes. Why have none of the travelers left this kingdom anyways?"
"The kingdom is surrounded by dangerous lands in all four directions and the only way through each of those lands is the safeways guarded by the empire's soldiers, and the only way through them is to obtain a permit is through the feudal lords of those regions."
"Oh my God! These dense fucking nobles are starting to get on my nerves and I'm not even from here! I don't know how the people actually living here can stand it. So let me get this straight. Orphans are forced to live as travelers, don't get trained for any profession what-so-ever, and can't contribute to society in any shape or form in pursuit of their happiness. If they're not killed and continue to be a burden on this oh-so-wonderful society of theirs, then why can't they leave the kingdom?"
"Because we're technically the Emperor's property and even though we're seen as eyesores we can only do as told."
"Listen to me, you are you, you aren't owned by anyone and you can do as you please. I'll support your decisions in whatever you do." Aoi reached out her hand and tucked a loose strand of Arunika's hair behind one of her ears causing her to blush from the sudden intimate action. Aoi rubbed Arunika's cheek with her thumb so as to comfort her and help her make a decision.
Arunika just looked at Aoi, her emerald eyes looking like leaves covered in a morning dew. She started crying and nodding her head. "Nn... I'll be free. This cottage is the most I can have and foraging and hunting for food everyday is tiring. *sniff* Some days I just want to sleep a little longer or just sit and relax all day, but I never could because if I didn't I'd go hungry. I just wanna hic- be lazy some days, you know?" She gave a small smile, eyes closed, with tears streaming down her cheeks.
Aoi pulled her into a hug and just pat her back. She said, "Oh my God! You're just so adorable. Honestly, it's taking me a lot just to not push you down right now and take advantage of you, hehe."
Arunika tenses up a little then lightly pushes Aoi away so they can see each other. She is facing Aoi but her eyes are moving around trying to look anywhere but into her eyes because she's started to notice a hunger hidden in the way Aoi is looking at her, like a beast sitting at the bottom of a deep blue trench just waiting for the right moment one falls into the abyss.
"..." Arunika whispers something inaudible.
"What did you say Aru-chan?"
"Th-then ple-please... take advantage of me, Aoi... -chan."