grieving

((Dependent Dolorosa RP blog. Part of the Servitudestuck RP group. NSFW will probably happen. Avatar is by Rocul, sidebar is by mistix, both on dA. Current M!A: N/A))

[chainedmother]

[gardenwitchcosplay-deactivated2]

The smiled that bloomed across Jade’s lips was just as sweet as the flowers surrounding them. Her enthusiasm being met with even a small warm reception was a success to the human girl. She continued her sketch as the taller woman stepped closer, coming to kneel beside her. Jade watched her admire the flowers from the corner of her eye as she drew, breathing in the refreshing scents herself and smiling contently. She caught the jade blood glancing over her paper every so often and she lowered it upon her knees so she could allow the troll a better look.

“Do you draw?” Jade asked, eyes still on the growing sketch of blooms across the page, mirroring the ones they were surrounded by. Her hands we quickly becoming covered in charcoal and Jade made a tiny noise of disappointment when she began to smudge the corners with her wrist. “Oopsie.”

[chainedmother]

Well, that was a nice response.  She wasn’t completely sure that this girl would allow her a better view of the drawing without her asking, but sure enough she’d picked up on the slightest cues and let the sketchbook rest more on her lap.  She took the opportunity to look over at the image being laid out on the paper before her.  It was quite a wonderful picture- this girl seemed to have an eye for capturing what made a scene truly appealing.  Perhaps it was the scent of the flora around them that helped her experience the imagery in such a complete manner.

“I’ve never quite had the opportunity to try,” she responded, looking over to the flowers as she reflected on her experiences.  “My life has always been so full of duties I’ve had to dedicate myself to.  Had it crossed my mind, I’m not sure pursuing art as a hobby could have been possible.”  She then looked back to the drawing, chuckling lightly as the girl accidentally smudged the corner.  “Even the greatest works are never perfect.”

[chainedmother]

Pleasant Times in Hell (Jade and the Dolorosa)

[gardenwitchcosplay-deactivated2]

Her smile widened as the jade blood returned her greeting, laying her sketchbook down against her knees. She hadn’t seen her before now, and Jade wondered if she was merely here to pick up a slave. Or perhaps visiting one of the trolls maintaining the hold. She didn’t voice these questions however. “It’s beautiful here.” She sighed fondly instead, her voice soft and full of a sort of giddy happiness.

She hummed and picked her sketchbook back up, smile bright and inviting as her pencil began moving across the page again. There was an openness to the human girl, a testament to her nature. She hadn’t been exposed to the harsher aspects of the rebellion or the hold for that matter, and it showed in her trusting and honest eyes.

[chainedmother]

Indeed, her initial perception of the girl continued to ring true.  Like the very garden they stood in, she seemed untouched by the atrocities of their situation.  She almost wished she could feel the joy that this human seemed to exude...and for her sake, she hoped nothing would tarnish that innocence any time soon, unlikely as that may turn out to be.

“Yes, it is,” she agreed quietly, kneeling down on both knees near the girl.  Being just that little bit closer to the flowers made her able to appreciate them more.  Her slight cynical thoughts toward the garden still lingered, but she could actively behold it in wonder for now.  She looked over to the other as the pencil went along the paper, keeping silent- though she was curious, she wouldn’t bother the other about the picture while she was busy.

[falsemustachioeddetective-blog]

Story Time (Dolorosa/Jane)

[falsemustachioeddetective-blog]

Jane couldn’t help but look in awe when the door was opened. She told herself it was fine, that the Dolorosa was definitely not intimidating but she was wrong. This was a wise troll who’d supported a cause she fought for in the higher ups, who had many stories to tell and wise words. She sounded like she liked being called the Dolorosa for a moment, but Jane wondered if perhaps she didn’t like it considering her situation currently. She could understand that. “I’m sorry if that name makes you uncomfortable ma’am.” She said softly, motioning for her to follower her down the hall so they could head towards her home. “I don’t happen to know your name otherwise, just as the Dolorosa from the many stories i’ve heard.” Sure, things got passed around about the rebellion but they would be nothing compared to the stories coming from her. She’d lived it closely, followed the Signless and raised him, watching from the very beginning. “May I ask your actual name, for future reference?” She waited for her to catch up and get on the transportalizer before transporting them to her home and then fidgeted a bit when they arrived, hoping the Dolorosa liked the decor. “I’m Jane, though I think I already told you that…” She muttered the last bit, shuffling where she stood and clearing her throat. “I have tea, as well, for the two of us. If you like tea anyway, if not I can always make you something else.”

[chainedmother]

The adult troll was caught a bit off-guard by the girl’s gaze when she opened the door.  She could understand simple common courtesy, even on the part of a master, but this...this seemed like respect.  Admiration, even.  Was it possible that she...?  No, she couldn’t go assuming that just yet.  Guessing that this would be an easy week was one thing, but she couldn’t think a step beyond until she had better reason to believe it.

“Oh, it doesn’t make me uncomfortable at all,” she responded, shaking her head gently.  “It is just not a name I expected many to call me here.  My first day here saw a particularly high-ranking member of the hold refer to me as that title in the past tense, after all.”  A particularly unpleasant one, too, but she left out that part.  She could guess that there were many high-ranking residents who were unpleasant, anyway.

“My name is Videmi Maryam,” she answered simply, continuing on to the transportalizer with her master.  She stepped aboard the platform and soon found herself in Jane’s home.  A brief glimpse around brought a smile to her lips.  It was quite a nice place, especially when compared to her everyday confines in the slavehold.  Just then Jane spoke up again, getting back the jadeblood’s attention.  “Yes, I know your name, Jane,” she replied patiently, giving a nod this time.  “And tea sounds wonderful now, thank you.”

[falsemustachioeddetective-blog]

Story Time (Dolorosa/Jane)

It was time. Jane had waited rather impatiently for the moment she could go pick up the Dolorosa in person. She’d was more than elated at the idea of hearing all the stories she had to offer and have pleasant conversation with the jade blood. Even if she didn’t want to tell rebellion stories Jane would be happy to listen to her talk about whatever she wished and headed towards the hold. She was practically bouncing with excitement, wringing the edge of her shirt as she stood outside the Dolorosa’s door. Though she’d yet to knock, she just wasn’t sure how to react. Stories never did the rebellions leaders justice, she still got nervous and a bit star struck around Herana no matter how hard she tried. It was just so unbelievably strange to have heard so many stories and look up to these trolls and then actually get to meet them. Taking a deep breath, she steadied herself and knocked on the door, hands going nervously back to her shirt after. “Dolorosa, ma’am? My name is Jane, im here to pick you up.” She had prepared a nice set of snacks and had hot water ready for tea back at her home if thats something the troll would be interested in, really Jane wanted to hear any and everything she had to say.

[chainedmother]

Videmi still hadn’t gotten to know everyone around the hold yet, but at least she was settling in fairly well.  She’d realized that it could be pretty depressing to stay here- miserable, even, at times- but overall, it wasn’t the complete hell that she imagined it to be.  No doubt that could change at any time- the whim of a particularly ruthless master was something she hoped she would never have to face.

She sat quietly in her room, awaiting the intrusion of the guardbots to escort her to her master’s home once more.  When it finally came, though, it was not a violent burst of privacy invasion, but a light knock.  It almost grabbed her attention more than what she’d expected.  And the voice on the other side...it was rather polite, and the speaker referred to her by her title.  Her curiosity was certainly grabbed by whoever it was that had just arrived...

Rising from the bed she sat upon, Videmi grabbed her bags and walked to the door, opening it up to see her master for the next two weeks.  It was a human girl, looking around the age of the one she’d met before.  She seemed to have a pleasant demeanor, though nervousness seemed to be seeping through.  It was a bit hard to believe she’d be at this girl’s mercy for the next weeks, and though she tried her best to make no assumptions about her character, she felt the time would be relatively easy.  “Not many call me that these days,” she remarked with a hint of fondness.  Being called the Dolorosa called back her memories of the rebellion and its followers...though she quickly suppressed such memories to bring herself back to the present.  “I am ready to leave right away if you wish for me to.”

[chainedmother]

Pleasant Times in Hell (Jade and the Dolorosa)

[gardenwitchcosplay-deactivated2]

It was too nice of a day to be inside and Jade had spent far too long in the slave hold; she was getting tired of being cooped up. Someone had let slip that there was a garden here on the grounds and the island native made it her mission to locate this hidden gem. She was curious to see what kinds of fauna was planted there and if it was anything like her atrium back home. Granted it was probably more tame than her expanding flora paradise but flowers always cheered the human girl up. And she could really use some cheering up lately.

Searching throughly had paid off in the end as she stumbled upon what was easily the nicest garden set up she’d seen in a long while. There were blooms of varying color and size and they all smelled like happiness to Jade. Before long she was sitting in the middle of one of the benches nearby and humming to herself as she pulled a sketch pad from her tasseled bag. She was so preoccupied with her sketching that she didn’t notice the presence of the jade blood until she saw the shadow on the ground she cast. Jade pushed thick unruly bangs away from her eyes and gave the taller troll woman a warm smile.

“Hello!” Jade chirped in a pleasant voice. It was obvious to anyone who spent more than five minutes with Jade Harley that she was disarmingly cheerful.

[chainedmother]

She hadn’t met very many others in the hold by that point.  She’d thought it was for the best- she wasn’t sure forming any bonds in here would be wise.  With how quickly their lives could be ruined by a particularly spiteful master or the slightest slip-of-the-tongue, either party in the relationship could be thrown into terrible harm, with the other left to stew in distress at the unfortunate turn in their companion’s life.  To Videmi, it seemed for the best to stick with the Rebellion leaders- painful as any harm to them would be, she could not let go of any of them.  Not even if her life depended on it.

Of course ,it seemed others didn’t think like she did at the time.  The human girl greeted her suddenly, pulling her from the idle trance the flowers kept her in.  She turned to look down at the bespectacled girl.  Reluctant as she felt to the idea of befriending people under these circumstances, she didn’t want to be rude, especially to one who seemed so welcoming.  “Hello there,” she responded, giving her own smile to the young human.

[chainedmother]

Pleasant Times in Hell (Jade and the Dolorosa)

For the short time that she had been here, Videmi hadn’t experienced a lot of the dreadful downsides being a slave in the hold held for people.  Despite her reunion with the others being interrupted by one of the place’s most detestable trolls, everything she’d been through so far hadn’t been entirely terrible.  Nevertheless, she knew better than to expect a lot of enjoyable times here.  The four were locked up in perhaps the most explicit symbol of the corruption that kept the system they’d fought against up and running, and it was a safe bet that most in here who had higher positions also had issues with them.  Good times would more than likely be a luxury.

Her recent arrival also meant she didn’t have much of a chance to explore the hold.  In asking around a bit, she’d come to learn about a courtyard located in the central area of the ground floor- supposedly quite the lovely place.  After searching around a bit she found one of the doors to it, opening it to step outside into the fresh afternoon air.  As she’d been told, it was incredible- not only was the current weather wonderful, but the copious flowers planted all around were beautiful.  For such a place to be literally in the middle of the Empire’s twisted prison meant to break its opposition...it almost seemed to be mocking them.

Still, it couldn’t hurt to make an effort to enjoy the things she’d been handed that weren’t completely awful.  She walked around the courtyard, admiring the colorful petals planted in such eye-catching ways.  She caught sight of a human in the same area, though this didn’t yet stop her admiration- however unconsciously reluctant it was.  

[chainedmother]

Tall Orders (Bro and Dolorosa)

The sudden sound of metal fists slamming against the door of her cramped quarters to take her to her master was something Videmi felt she’d never come to appreciate.  Neither was the guard bots’ stern, unfeeling presence as they marched behind her, escorting her through the halls of the slavehold.  She understood the added precautions, of course- she’d put up quite a fight in her capture, so they’d want to be careful.  Nevertheless, she didn’t have any intentions of causing trouble this go-round.  She’d be as well-behaved as she could be for whoever her master was.

She hadn’t really been paying attention to where they were going along the way, but it didn’t seem to take very long before they arrived.  She wondered silently to herself who would have been the first to rent her, while the bots not-so-silently knocked on the door to gain the attention of whoever lived there.  Surely they couldn’t be worse than Tomori supposedly was...

[rebellingchicanery]

Tea with an old friend. [Disciple/Dolorosa.]

[rebellingchicanery]

She listens to them carefully, tea remaining undrunk as they speak so as to show her respect and to be polite, the china clinking as she leans forwards to take their hand in hers. “The fire of rebellion was pawlways made and fuelled with the ferocity and determination of those who want change. Purroviding they still want change, they will purrservere.” Especially since those involved have seen the ways their lives can change through kindness, the Rebellion having opened welcoming arms to those wishing to be involved. Things many trolls had little experience of.

Her eyes flick to the guard bots that surround the room and line the corridor outside, the red glass of their visors glinting in the overhead lights. They would undoubtedly be recording this conversation for the higherups. She clears her throat and lets go of their wrist, sitting back so she can sip her tea. “Do you know who brought you in?”

[chainedmother]

She had to be careful when her hand was suddenly grabbed, making sure the tea didn’t get spilled as she looked into the olive eyes from across from the table.  She set it back down on the wooden surface to avoid the trouble.  The other’s words got a nod from her.  “Yes, they will.  They wouldn’t have joined our cause at all if they didn’t have the ultimate desire to bring about that change.  Grim as the situation may be, they will keep fighting.”

Her own gaze followed the other’s to the guard bots, quickly going back to her when she asked her question.  “Unfortunately, no.  They knocked me out quite handily with a shock, and when I woke up the memories were hazy.  Additionally...”  She leaned closer to the Leijon, speaking in a more hushed tone.  “While trying to fight them off, my...condition overcame me as a result of desperation.  That may have added to my difficulty with remembering.  If I were to see the one who captured me, I might be able to recognize them.”

[rebellingchicanery]

Tea with an old friend. [Disciple/Dolorosa.]

[rebellingchicanery]

“The reality she reminded you of is merely the tip of the iceberg, Vi, it’ll get a lot worse from here on in.” She leans down to pick up the teaspoon she’d knocked off of the tray while picking up her own saucer, the blood stained bandages adorning the top of her chest immediately obvious from the dropped neckline of her shirt. They’re hidden again as she sits up again with a quiet sigh, setting the spoon down.

“I’m glad you lasted so long befur they got you too. Now we can all suppurrt each other again, it’ll be like old times.” Her eyes shine at the prospect of having her loved ones around her again, the oliveblood having already been locked up for the past sweep or so by herself. And it’s clear she’s gained many new scars, the most obvious being the vicious scarring that covers most of her left cheek and jaw. But now she has everyone else to keep her strong, not just the scrap of her former self to cling to.

[chainedmother]

“I don’t doubt that.  Perhaps it was more a warning not to get too comfortable, making sure I knew that while we may be back together again, the circumstances are far from desirable.”  She stirred her tea lightly, noticing the bandages while they were visible.  The condition of her son’s disciple was a clear indicator of just how undesirable those circumstances could get- however long she’d been here, she’d suffered greatly many times.  No doubt there were many here that would revel in the misery of the rebellion.

The hope that sparked in Herana’s eyes brought a smile to the rainbow drinker’s face.  “If I’m being honest, before I knew you all were alive in here, I was greatly ashamed,” she admitted, looking down into the tea she held.  “Once we were split apart, I knew I’d need to do all I could to help keep Kaiser’s message alive.  I had to flee with whoever would follow me in a desperate attempt to stay free and keep to my duties...but it wasn’t long before they found me as well.  I felt a sting of failure as great as the one I’d felt when I lost Kaiser, though this time it was as his follower rather than his mother.  I thought my capture would only help push the rebellion further toward surrender...”  She finally looked up at the other troll again, the smile that had fallen as she told her story returning.  “But seeing you all here again- knowing that together we can surely keep our own faith alive- .I can only believe that there are those out there whose resolve will be just as resolute as ours must be, even though we can no longer reach them.”

[rebellingchicanery]

Tea with an old friend. [Disciple/Dolorosa.]

Herana had ended up vanishing off to the kitchen just off the common room in order to avoid Tomori, eventually reappearing once they’d left. She reenters the common room with care, looking out for the maroonblood before carrying out a laden tray, keeping a wary eye on the teacups. She doesn’t want them to fall off. She carries the tray to the coffee table by Videmi, sitting down to set up the cups and saucers, pouring the tea with nary a drip. For one with such a passion of hunting and the like, she remains to this day, a fan of tea and cute saucers. She finishes them off with milk and sugar, picking hers up. “I do wish you’d had a more peacefurl entrance, Videmi. Efurryone was so happy before she came in. But no surpurrise there.” 

[chainedmother]

Videmi couldn’t blame the other for making herself scarce while Tomori was around.  The immortal was thoroughly unpleasant to be around, and really it was a wonder that she hadn’t said anything to set her off.  She could see it happening in due time, of course- she seemed like someone who quite enjoyed finding ways to get under others’ skin.  With a sigh she sat down in a spot near a table when Tomori was gone, soon noticing Herana exiting the kitchen with some tea.  She thanked her as she took the remaining teacup, taking a quiet sip while her friend spoke.  “You and I both, Herana.  At the very least, it served as a reminder of the reality I’ve suddenly found myself thrown into, though I’d have much preferred it to come later.”