#evransahip

As backwards as it might have seemed to some, Isabel was earnestly excited about her punishment.  Not at the promise of pain, she wasn’t looking forward to that bit.  But at the potential that this might let her move past her grief, that it might be a small step forward in healing that deep well of pain that constantly bubbled just under the surface of her emotions.

She’d done all of the chores set forth for her on her white board, spent the designated time with her tutor and exercising, followed her daily schedule to the T.  And the time had come to pay her penance, the day’s approved outfit stripped off, carefully folded, and put aside as she knelt outside of Evran’s room.  It would be a lie to say she wasn’t nervous, but beneath her racing heart was hope that this might truly help as much as it would hurt.  She was ready.

It had been a long, hard day.  Her finance professor had agreed to give her a second opportunity on her first project, but no matter how many times or ways she ran the numbers, nothing seemed to change.  Hours of beating her head on the table in the library until eventually she gave up for the evening, hoping to get a few hours of not-nightmare-fueled slumber before giving it another pass in the morning.  Isabel had been walking back to the cells when spotted him, nearly choking on the sudden swell of emotion.

“Master Kadri!” came the excited cry, books dropped as she launched herself at him.  The tears she’d been trying not to shed for the past few weeks fell freely.  In her mind, his presence was proof that her father didn’t completely hate her despite his disappointed and sharp words when she left.  That she wasn’t completely alone and cut off from home.  Not with her longest and oldest tutor here and her face buried in his chest.  “Oh, Master Kadri, the world is so big and empty without her and I’m so, so happy to see you,” came the almost desperate words, the choked sobs at odds with the sentiment.  But she’d been barely keeping the grief at bay for weeks now and at the sight of him, all of it unleashed.  “It’s, it’s a little less big now.”

There were few things that Isabel looked forward to on the island.  Shifts at either of her jobs were always welcomed, each appealing to one side or another of her personality.  The classes that weren’t specific to her chosen majors also tended to be a source of joy, once she got past the crowded amphitheaters they were held in.  And then of course, there were her weekly lunches with Master Kadri.  They almost felt like being home again, when she’d once excitedly chittered about new discoveries.

This particular lunch, however, she was quieter than usual.  An idle thought had gripped her mind and refused to let go, and there was no one she trusted more on the island than the mimic who had been a significant part of her entire life.  Isabel just wasn’t sure how to go about asking for what she thought might help, the slave toying with her spoon and dessert as she gathered up her courage.  “Master Kadri?” she quietly began, clearing her throat as she considered how best to ask for both his opinion and assistance.  “It’s been months, now, and I - I don’t feel like I’ve gotten better, because I still don’t feel like I’ve been really, properly punished.  I was wondering, um.”  Setting her spoon down next to a half-eaten dessert, she finally looked up to meet Evran’s eye.  “If you thought it might be a good idea, to-to do that.  If it might help me heal, just a little.”  

“Oh!  Um.  I love Master Kadri, and probably trust him more than I trust anyone else on the planet.  But I’ve known him all my life, there’s not a time I can remember where he wasn’t around.  And he’s ... I don’t know, he’s always been more of a father figure, I guess.  That would probably make it weird, right?  It would probably be weird.”

@evransahip

To: @evransahip​

It had finally happened.  Isabel supposed it was only inevitable on the island that eventually she’d have a run-in with someone who was not only interested in sex, but pain.  Tears and blood had long ago dried, her sheets stained with both.  The touch to her forehead felt uncharacteristically warm, likely because she felt incredibly cold after the blood loss she’d suffered.  But she hadn’t been able to find the energy to pull her blanket on top of her; just making it to the bed in the first place had been difficult.  The sound of the words “Oh, mariposita,” had her tugging her eyelids open to see her beloved Master Kadri, the brush of the back of his hand to her cheek as welcome as the feel of his hand in hers.  “Come.  The infirmary first, and home for a warm bath to clean you up.  You’ve had enough for today.”

@evransahip