Yasmin lost count on how many times she passed out only to be brought back to consciousness by the uncomfortable and painful sensation of her skin being punctured over and over and over again. Added to the previous pain from the branding, she felt like dying; her skin felt tight and unbearably tense, she wanted to rip it off her flesh to relieve herself of the discomfort. Her eyes were puffy and swollen from crying, her throat felt dry and tight, it also ached from all her previous wailing and screaming.
Lord Javier worked diligently and quickly as he hunched over Yasmin's back, his eyebrows drawn tight in concentration and his throat hummed a soft tune. He would pause in-between intervals to switch out the copper needle to a different size or to change location on Yasmin's back.
Yasmin's body jerked up suddenly when the needle was jammed in a particularly sensitive part of her lower back, her throat too sore to even voice out a sound of displeasure.
"Don't move."
Was all Javier said before continuing his work. He was currently tattooing the Augusta family crest on her back, a requirement for every servant; mainly those who were bought as slaves. The procedure was normally done by first numbing the skin with clove oil or spilanthes plant, then to puncture the skin with copper needles into the desired design and lastly, rub ink into the wounds to make out the design and left to slowly heal. The process was painful but manageable but in Yasmin's case though, no numbing was done beforehand, she had to bear the raw pain as a part of her punishment.
For servants to bear the mark of a prominent family such as the Augustas, it was an honour. Even after retirement or no longer working for the family they would still be treated with respect and many opportunities will be opened up for them. However for Yasmin this mark was nothing but a constant reminder of the pain she had to go through and how she was treated unfairly. She would forever carry this grudge in her heart.
Yasmin eventually could no longer bear the pain of staying awake and soon lost consciousness. When she woke up again she was no longer in the branding chamber, she blinked her eyes slowly as her brain worked to wake fully. She was laying on a soft surface that smelled like lavenders– no longer on the hard and uncomfortable metal table of the branding chamber– she was laying on her stomach and when she tried to get up a sharp stinging pain ran along her back and shoulders causing her to hiss loudly in pain.
"Fucking shi–"
"You're awake?"
Yasmin whipped her head around in the direction of the sudden voice, her eyes landing on a young woman sitting across from her. She said nothing, only staring, the woman had skin the colour of coffee which was adorned with gold jewellery and maroon silk robes. Her sharp eyes continued to stare Yasmin down as she gracefully rose from her seat and strolled over to Yasmin, the ornaments on her braided hair jingling with her every step.
Yasmin slowly sat up, mindful of her back as she watched the woman approach. The closer she got the more she realised that she looked very similar to Lord Javier.
As if sensing her thoughts, the woman introduced herself.
"I am Amari Augusta, older sister of Duke Javier Augusta. You are?"
"Yas…" she only managed to say half her name before coughing. Her throat felt like she had swallowed sand.
"Here."
She looked up to see Amari holding a glass of water. Giving the glass a critical look, Yasmin took it with shaky hands almost spilling the liquid. She took a small sip, the cool liquid immediately easing the dryness of her throat. Yasmin was soon gulping down the water eagerly, emptying the glass in seconds.
"More?"
Yasmin nodded.
Two more glasses of water later and Yasmin's throat finally felt better, her eyelids suddenly felt heavy and a heaviness was weighing her body down.
'Now that I think of it….the water tasted kind of strange…'
"You should get some more rest, it will help you heal faster." Amari said, gently pushing Yasmin back in bed by her shoulders.
Yasmin could barely keep her eyes open, the heaviness of her body only growing more. "The water…."
Amari smiled sweetly, "nothing to worry about, it's just something to help with the pain and help you rest." She brushed stray hairs from Yasmin's forehead, "I won't harm you…. I promise."
Yasmin only managed a small nod before she was consumed by darkness.
When Yasmin woke again it was to the feeling of something cool and damp trailing along her body. It felt so good that she couldn't help but release a pleased sigh.
"Awake?"
Yasmin hummed, her eyes opened slowly. She saw Amari with a wet cloth in her hand wiping across her exposed stomach and thighs. The only part of her that was covered were her privates, the bandage covering her back and shoulders also wrapped around her breast. She didn't mind her almost nude state and only continued to stare at Amari.
"Why are you doing this…?"
Amari hummed, still wiping Yasmin, "you were sweating in your sleep, I figured you'd feel uncomfortable."
"No, I meant why are you the one doing this....don't you have servants?"
Amari paused her task to bring the cloth over to a basin resting on the table next to bed. She soaked up some more water before wringing some out and bringing back the cloth over to Yasmin's body.
"You were a gift for me no? Therefore you are my responsibility, I won't let anyone touch you but me."
"...I am not a thing."
Amari smiled her eyes curved up in crescents, the act made her look even more like her brother
"Of Course not– you're a living, breathing human being" she had abandoned the washcloth, her bare hands caressing the side of Yasmin's leg "you can feel pain as well as pleasure…"
Yasmin couldn't help the shudder that ran along her body, she was just feeling the cool sensation from the wet cloth only for it to be suddenly replaced by Lady Amari's warm hand. It trailed along the inside of her leg, stopping at her mid thigh.
"Although we look similar, I am nothing like my brother. Of Course– even with his cruel ways I still love him dearly." a fond expression shadowed Amari's face, her eyes unfocused as if her mind was far away. "When we were younger, our mother always told us to take care of our toys. I would always listen while Javier….not so much," she chuckled.
"He would always get bored so easily, destroying his toys and then tossing them away. Even when our mother tried to fix them he would say, "broken toys are nothing but garbage and garbage should be tossed away…"
Amari sighed with a small smile and shook her head as if shaking away a memory. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I 'll take care of you– though you may not like it, you were brought to me as a gift, a toy, my plaything–" the hand that was merely resting on Yasmin's thigh took a firm hold– "After all, broken toys are indeed merely trash."
Yasmin's hands clenched at her sides, 'what happened to seeing me as a human being huh?'
Though even if she was angry she couldn't do anything about her situation, she was only a little rabbit in the tiger's den. She could only pray and hope she wouldn't be eaten…