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runicloreTitle: A Clockwork Snare [part 0.5]
Author: Amber Michelle
Rating: PG (at most).
Setting: The official IoM whatthefuckverse
Notes: a Lapis Rose snippet. This may or may not be a good thing. Inspired by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
kytha's untitled fic snippet, which takes place directly after the story.
If one good thing were to be said about Judas as he is now, it would be that he's a man of his word - such as it is. Though he leaves her bedroom briefly to assure himself that his preparations are complete, he returns quickly to seat himself on the chair beside the bed and summons a book to his hand so he might keep his mind occupied. Dwelling on his guest wouldn't bode well for either of them.
However, the whispers of hints about China in the Yamato text he'd chosen to entertain himself with simply couldn't hold his attention. It was a bold move he'd made, dwelling so long in one place and stealing the girl from under her mother's close watch. The nobility was difficult to predict in Artolia. One house might be weak, and willing to roll over and allow others to walk all over them; others would pursue a slight to the bitter end of either their fortune, reputation, or even their own lives. Raeger's former fiance, he thought, was the upright sort who would pursue her to the end of the world if he caught hint of her true circumstances.
Lombert was another consideration he had flippantly disregarded. Only now, after attempting to circumvent the man's wards to enter the palace, did he feel that perhaps his negligence would be harmful to his plans.
And the rhythm of Raeger's deep, even breathing caught him under its spell until he drew his own breaths in tandem with hers, and ceased trying to read altogether.
Her features were still tense when he glanced at her, and her hands clutched the edge of the coverlet tightly to her chest. She looked more a child than ever. Yamato slaves were more delicate, most Artolian women more robust; this one was pale and thin, like a shadow or a ghost, used and then left to haunt her room and seek refuge in books and stories. Overpowered by the living flame of the Artolian princess, smothered by the heavy shadow of her mother's will. Her last request before falling asleep rang in his mind, and he wondered if perhaps she would only manage to exchange one slavery for another, if he kept her there.
Judas left the book on his chair and went to the window, where he shed his coat and pulled the brocade aside to seek the night sky. The darkness below was empty but for the howl of the wind and rustle of the brush. There was a great lake in the distance he often would see gleaming on nights like this, but the moon had waned to a mere shadow, and the stars were not bright enough to ignite the surface of the water.
China would have to wait. He heard himself sigh, breaking the timing of his breathing, but there was no regret in it. His findings regarding its location were nebulous at best. Caring for his new charge would allow him time to focus his research. And if she required more time than he anticipated? Well. He had forever, after all. His wasn't a comfortable existence, but it was eternal, as far as he knew.
The temperature grew steadily cooler, until even Judas felt its effect and tensed at the chill. He returned to the bedside and abandoned his coat at the foot of the bed. He pulled a down quilt from the chest and settled beside Raeger atop the covers. The quilt he pulled up until it reached her chin and, after a moment of hesitation, he gathered her in a loose embrace, her head nestled beneath his chin. She relaxed as the chill abated, and he leaned back against the pillows to stare at the lamp.
He would move before she woke, of course, so the poor girl wouldn't be alarmed. The life ahead of her would be difficult enough without doubt casting its shadow over her eyes.
*
Morning brought little warmth, but the sun shined brightly upon the forested crags surrounding his home. Judas opened the curtains at the rise dawn, and summoned his servant to order a breakfast prepared. The boy was young, hardly fifteen summers of he judged rightly, but had worked since childhood in the kitchen of a manor in northern Gerabellum. He was the only Yamato slave Judas had been unable to return to Japan, for the magic that lingered about him. Not the potential of a human mage, but the curse that came with mixed blood. And the boy, who found comfort with neither his human nor merfolk relatives, had returned with him to the Clockwork mansion promising to serve in return for shelter.
So far, he had not disappointed. He was quick to run with his orders, hardly sparing a glance for the girl, and before long Judas caught a faint aroma of spiced bread on the air. The clothing he set aside for Raeger, too, was perfectly arranged in the dressing room.
He withdrew to dress, exchanging what he'd worn to Artolia for a warmer ensemble, and when he returned, Raeger was propped on her elbows and blinking into the sunlight. Yuki stole in quietly with a covered tray and left just as soundlessly after sliding it onto the table.
"Would you care for breakfast, my lady?" he asked.
She seemed to snap out of her daze and pushed herself up, still squinting against the light. Her hair was a messy halo of gold against the dark wood headboard. "Where..." Her voice was still slurred with sleep.
"Safe." He smiled faintly. "You should try to eat, my lady. Your constitution isn't strong enough to skip meals like this."
Raeger blinked and looked as if she wanted to protest, but seemed to think better of it and simply slipped out of bed to pad hesitantly to the table. Yuki's shadow approached the door beyond, and Judas motioned him away.
Another human presence in the house was odd, to say the least. Judas kept his distance for the moment and lingered instead by the window, adjusting his cuffs and then staring outside, glancing at the girl periodically while she ate. Her feelings were an incomprehensible tangle. He'd be surprised if she knew how she felt herself, though he didn't want to push her to any hasty decisions by hovering at her elbow like a shadow.
She set her fork down slowly, after what seemed like an eternity, and Judas said: "I have set clothing aside for you, if that is acceptable?"
Her response was slow in coming, her head bowed. But she assented with a nod when she caught him watching, and he approached to take her hand and lead her into the dressing room.
"This was a gift from my last visit to Yamato," he said, when her eyebrows rose. Three layers of robes were laid out over a dressing bench, violet, dark green, and white. Arranged on a mannequin was the light robe and indigo trousers that would be worn beneath them, so she could see how the ties were to be arranged. "If you feel able to handle this," he continued, brushing the pale sleeve to draw her attention to it, "Then I will leave you to change, and help you with the others when you're ready."
...
...
More notes: I will finish. Really. I'm just very tired, and need to find a snack. RIGHT NOW. :p
For image reference, the under-clothing (though Raeger's isn't red), an example of the robes, and another example - which is slightly more elaborate than he'd give her, since he's trying to simplify her fashion statements, but the colors are right. Twelve layers of robes would probably be uncomfortable, but three or four will just keep her warm. And hey, it's not a corset. :P
I swear I'm not trying to stuff everyone into Heian costume. It just seemed right at the time. >_>
I really shouldn't write this late. Pff.
*
Author: Amber Michelle
Rating: PG (at most).
Setting: The official IoM whatthefuckverse
Notes: a Lapis Rose snippet. This may or may not be a good thing. Inspired by
kytha's untitled fic snippet, which takes place directly after the story.If one good thing were to be said about Judas as he is now, it would be that he's a man of his word - such as it is. Though he leaves her bedroom briefly to assure himself that his preparations are complete, he returns quickly to seat himself on the chair beside the bed and summons a book to his hand so he might keep his mind occupied. Dwelling on his guest wouldn't bode well for either of them.
However, the whispers of hints about China in the Yamato text he'd chosen to entertain himself with simply couldn't hold his attention. It was a bold move he'd made, dwelling so long in one place and stealing the girl from under her mother's close watch. The nobility was difficult to predict in Artolia. One house might be weak, and willing to roll over and allow others to walk all over them; others would pursue a slight to the bitter end of either their fortune, reputation, or even their own lives. Raeger's former fiance, he thought, was the upright sort who would pursue her to the end of the world if he caught hint of her true circumstances.
Lombert was another consideration he had flippantly disregarded. Only now, after attempting to circumvent the man's wards to enter the palace, did he feel that perhaps his negligence would be harmful to his plans.
And the rhythm of Raeger's deep, even breathing caught him under its spell until he drew his own breaths in tandem with hers, and ceased trying to read altogether.
Her features were still tense when he glanced at her, and her hands clutched the edge of the coverlet tightly to her chest. She looked more a child than ever. Yamato slaves were more delicate, most Artolian women more robust; this one was pale and thin, like a shadow or a ghost, used and then left to haunt her room and seek refuge in books and stories. Overpowered by the living flame of the Artolian princess, smothered by the heavy shadow of her mother's will. Her last request before falling asleep rang in his mind, and he wondered if perhaps she would only manage to exchange one slavery for another, if he kept her there.
Judas left the book on his chair and went to the window, where he shed his coat and pulled the brocade aside to seek the night sky. The darkness below was empty but for the howl of the wind and rustle of the brush. There was a great lake in the distance he often would see gleaming on nights like this, but the moon had waned to a mere shadow, and the stars were not bright enough to ignite the surface of the water.
China would have to wait. He heard himself sigh, breaking the timing of his breathing, but there was no regret in it. His findings regarding its location were nebulous at best. Caring for his new charge would allow him time to focus his research. And if she required more time than he anticipated? Well. He had forever, after all. His wasn't a comfortable existence, but it was eternal, as far as he knew.
The temperature grew steadily cooler, until even Judas felt its effect and tensed at the chill. He returned to the bedside and abandoned his coat at the foot of the bed. He pulled a down quilt from the chest and settled beside Raeger atop the covers. The quilt he pulled up until it reached her chin and, after a moment of hesitation, he gathered her in a loose embrace, her head nestled beneath his chin. She relaxed as the chill abated, and he leaned back against the pillows to stare at the lamp.
He would move before she woke, of course, so the poor girl wouldn't be alarmed. The life ahead of her would be difficult enough without doubt casting its shadow over her eyes.
*
Morning brought little warmth, but the sun shined brightly upon the forested crags surrounding his home. Judas opened the curtains at the rise dawn, and summoned his servant to order a breakfast prepared. The boy was young, hardly fifteen summers of he judged rightly, but had worked since childhood in the kitchen of a manor in northern Gerabellum. He was the only Yamato slave Judas had been unable to return to Japan, for the magic that lingered about him. Not the potential of a human mage, but the curse that came with mixed blood. And the boy, who found comfort with neither his human nor merfolk relatives, had returned with him to the Clockwork mansion promising to serve in return for shelter.
So far, he had not disappointed. He was quick to run with his orders, hardly sparing a glance for the girl, and before long Judas caught a faint aroma of spiced bread on the air. The clothing he set aside for Raeger, too, was perfectly arranged in the dressing room.
He withdrew to dress, exchanging what he'd worn to Artolia for a warmer ensemble, and when he returned, Raeger was propped on her elbows and blinking into the sunlight. Yuki stole in quietly with a covered tray and left just as soundlessly after sliding it onto the table.
"Would you care for breakfast, my lady?" he asked.
She seemed to snap out of her daze and pushed herself up, still squinting against the light. Her hair was a messy halo of gold against the dark wood headboard. "Where..." Her voice was still slurred with sleep.
"Safe." He smiled faintly. "You should try to eat, my lady. Your constitution isn't strong enough to skip meals like this."
Raeger blinked and looked as if she wanted to protest, but seemed to think better of it and simply slipped out of bed to pad hesitantly to the table. Yuki's shadow approached the door beyond, and Judas motioned him away.
Another human presence in the house was odd, to say the least. Judas kept his distance for the moment and lingered instead by the window, adjusting his cuffs and then staring outside, glancing at the girl periodically while she ate. Her feelings were an incomprehensible tangle. He'd be surprised if she knew how she felt herself, though he didn't want to push her to any hasty decisions by hovering at her elbow like a shadow.
She set her fork down slowly, after what seemed like an eternity, and Judas said: "I have set clothing aside for you, if that is acceptable?"
Her response was slow in coming, her head bowed. But she assented with a nod when she caught him watching, and he approached to take her hand and lead her into the dressing room.
"This was a gift from my last visit to Yamato," he said, when her eyebrows rose. Three layers of robes were laid out over a dressing bench, violet, dark green, and white. Arranged on a mannequin was the light robe and indigo trousers that would be worn beneath them, so she could see how the ties were to be arranged. "If you feel able to handle this," he continued, brushing the pale sleeve to draw her attention to it, "Then I will leave you to change, and help you with the others when you're ready."
...
...
More notes: I will finish. Really. I'm just very tired, and need to find a snack. RIGHT NOW. :p
For image reference, the under-clothing (though Raeger's isn't red), an example of the robes, and another example - which is slightly more elaborate than he'd give her, since he's trying to simplify her fashion statements, but the colors are right. Twelve layers of robes would probably be uncomfortable, but three or four will just keep her warm. And hey, it's not a corset. :P
I swear I'm not trying to stuff everyone into Heian costume. It just seemed right at the time. >_>
I really shouldn't write this late. Pff.
*