tales of blue and red

When she heard Chimera’s call she was playing with Ruse in the chambers she shared with Siren, chuckling as she watched the energetic girl hop from pillow to pillow on the little “islands” she had set up across the floor. No doubt the girl was going to be two pawfuls when she was older. Her ears perked at Chimera’s howl and she lifted her head to listen for a moment. Looking back to Rusalka, she instructed her daughter to remain in their room and not to go climbing any more shelves, and then left the room to go see what the King needed her for. It wasn’t often that she was called by him alone so she was curious to see what task he had for her.

When she arrived at his chambers she stepped inside the now fairly familiar space, finding the King in the bathing room along with a stranger. She blinked with surprise at the smaller man, taking in his ragged, dirty appearance. She wasn’t left to wonder and speculate for long, lifting her pale gaze to meet Chimera’s as he moved toward her and began to fill her in. A new slave that was in bad shape and a request to bathe and feed the poor soul. She was aware of the other slaves Chimera kept, but she had never been to the structure where they were housed and she certainly hadn’t seen Chimera bring any of them here—especially not to his personal chambers. He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead, making her blink with surprise again, but this time it was quickly followed by a soft smile. “Of course,” she responded easily with a nod. If this was something important to him then she’d make sure it was done.

She glanced over her shoulder to watch Chimera leave the room curiously, thinking to herself about how much he had matured and softened in the time since she had come to live with him, and then she turned her attention back to the male in question. She offered him a kind smile, nodding to the tub that had been filled with water. “Well then, lets get you bathed, hm?” she said, keeping her tone light and friendly. Even though it felt like a lifetime ago now, she still remembered clear as day what it had been like to be in the man’s position. Before she had gone to live with her first mistress she hadn’t been in much better shape and it tugged at her heart to see him this way. Once he was in the water, helping him if he needed it, she picked up some soap that was unscented save for a subtle, clean smell. She knew Chimera didn’t enjoy the more floral fragrances that she and some of the other women used for himself and she didn’t imagine he’d want this man to smell of flowers either. She sat at the edge of the tub, wetting the soap and beginning to work it through his filthy fur much like she had for Siren more times than she could count. “I’m Dalila,” she said after a couple of moments, glancing up at him with another smile. “What is your name?”

"Dalila"