"Mariel, " he said, glad that he wouldn't have to ask
and embarress
himself further, "it seems that you are in need of a
friend. I don't
know if I can help, but I'm a good listener." Just at
that moment,
Winter approached and asked if he could get them
anything. "Why don't
we sit and have something to eat and drink, and maybe
you'll feel like
talking."

Turning to the bartender, V. asked "Please bring
something warming for
the lady, Irish coffee for myself, and if it's not too
much trouble
some
comfort food from the kitchen."

Mariel allowed herself to be led away, almost in a
daze. She couldn't believe the kindness He was
exhibiting. She allowed him to sit her down, then
wished that she were dressed in something else. This
outfit... She wrapped her arms around herself,
shivering. And through it all He just watched her.

She put her hands in her lap and looked down at them.
"What is there to say? I was a typical rich girl,
pampered, well educated. Taught not to do anything
shocking, so I just had to do something shocking."
She stared at the table again, resisting the urge to
look up at this kind man, knowing that everyone in the
room was hearing her tale, by the silence that
suddenly stilled the room.

"It was not at my debut ball, but at my friend's - No,
we got through my debut okay. And He was there. He was
the guest of one of the other young ladies, and I
could feel Him watching me from across the room. I
brushed off His stares, and went outside, to get a
bit of fresh air. He was there, and His hand was in
my hair, His hand over my mouth, whispering to me that
if i made a noise He would kill me...." Her voice
trailed off as she turned to stare out the window.

"He dragged me off into the overgrown garden and I was
quickly bound, blindfolded and gagged, thrown over His
shoulder and taken to a car..."

She looked up right then. "Yeah, it was kidnapping,
no, I had no clue what bdsm was, and He took me back
to His flatt and began to teach me. He ran a stable
of girls and eventually I was sold to the one who
wrote that letter." She tapped the letter with one
nail. "We lived together for several years - almost
as husband and wife, and... I displeased Him the
other night by arguing with Him about who He chose as
a bed partner." She looked down at her hands again.
"Property does not have the right to argue, does it?
So He ripped my collar off, slapped me, and left - the
next morning, today, that letter was here and He was
gone."

She looked Him directly in the eye. "You wonder why
I'm lost?" Somehow the words didn't sound as bitter
as they should have. "I've lost my reason for being,
which is why You came to me, found me watching the icy
coldness daring it to come and take me." She wiped
the very real tears out of her eyes, willing herself
not to cry.



=====
Counselor Vanyssa Winters, USS Nimitz, FGN
Counselor Meiko Yamamoto, USS Phoenix, FGN

Baroness Mariel Joseit D'elrissi, 22 year old bundle of confusion ^_^

"Because he was human, because he had goodness, because he was moral, they
called him insane. Delusions of grandeur, visions of splendor, a manic
depressive he walks in the rain." ~Cinderella Man, Rush~

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