"Korel", she murmured. "He wants her already?"
He squinted one of his eyes. "Was she not meant to marry him from the onset? That fool Corinth just made a mistake.
"Please", she begged, "Please don't do this to her; she's...She's too young to be getting married. She has finally found somewhere she can call home; is this really what you want her fate to be?!"
Tears began to drip from her eyes as I rushed toward her, grabbing her shoulders. "Mrs Briel, please don't-
"I don't care about her fate", the man said, interrupting. "Why should I? If you don't let me take her to Master Korel, then we'll have to continuously ship her around. We only decided this was her final destination because she is meant to get married and settle down here".
Briel raised her head again, probably to plead with him, but I stopped her in time, holding her close to me.
"And who are any of you to decide for me?", I asked the man, my blood boiling. Why was I always treated like a useless product?
He leaned on the wall. "You are nobody, little lady; we could have used you for our personal delight, yet we gave you the thrill of getting to see the world".
I rolled my fists into a ball. "That's your business; I was the one who let you and your foolish group decide what my life will be. It's gotten to your heads".
He fell into laughter, pushing himself off the wall, "Really? Who gave you this ideology? Mr John, Aaron, this petty woman here?"
I grabbed his collar, my body aching to hurt him, but Briel had already grabbed my hands, begging me to let go of him.
"But he..." I took a deep breath, calming down. "He insulted you, insulted me; these fools have been doing this way too long, and they believe there are no consequences. It's because of cowardly people like me!"
I let go of the man, a smirk forming on his face; if only Brief would let me treat him the way I should have long ago.
Brief placed her hands on my hair. "Don't stoop yourself down to their levels, Genessa. I promise you, even if it takes my last breath, I'll make sure you live the life you deserve".
She turned towards the man, "Friday, please. You can come for her on Friday, let her prepare herself and her things. Please".
He groaned, cracking his fingers, "Since the 'Tears and Threats' episode is finally done, and you two finally have sense, then Friday is no problem".
He bowed slightly, "It was a pleasure, Ladies", and he walked away.
I hissed as he left, "Acting like a gentleman now like he isn't a little pus-".
"Genessa", Briel said gently, grabbing me before I could answer. She wrapped her hands around me, hugging me tightly.
I could feel tears dropping on my shoulder, Briel's tears. She seemed to be trying to say something, but her voice was shaky.
"I-I'm sorry your life is going this way, Genessa. If only my family had more money, more influence, then maybe I could have-".
She fell short of words, tears streaming down her eyes. I held mine in, patting her head. "Don't say that; I'll be okay. I've known them for a long time; I know how to deal with them".
She let go of me, shifting back a bit as she grabbed a tissue, dabbing her eyes. "These men- are they the ones who send you from place to place?"
I nodded. "Ever since Uranus sold me to them when I was younger, they've been sending me to various places, various people for a specific amount of time, for me to do some kind of labour".
She stopped dabbing, "Uranus, is that not the Sea God?"
I sighed, "Even I don't fully know my history; I stick with the little I was told".
She grabbed my hands, "Don't lose hope, Genessa. You won't spend your entire life fulfilling someone else's wishes. I will speak to Aaron and see if he has enough connections to get you out of this".
I smiled, nodding, "Thank you, Mrs Briel. You're always there for me. Maybe we should go to the marketplace some other time; you've drained your energy on me".
She giggled, "You just want to get out of meeting people your age, don't you? I didn't know you were shy in certain areas, Genessa?"
I grinned, "Do I seem extroverted? I'm not at the least bit".
We laughed together, mine rough and tired, while hers were as gentle as the wind that caressed the flowers.
"You should go to the academy", she added. "Aaron would like some help".
"Oh, that's right", I handed her back the dresses. "I'll go prepare; this dress wouldn't fit the occasion".
12:00 PM
The streets felt slightly safer now; maybe it was because it was my second time, or because people were too focused on avoiding the scorching sun to look at me.
The way to the university was a straight path from our house; it wasn't hard to remember.
I stopped once the tall building came into sight, confused about what my next step would be. How would I find him?
I opened the school doors, hesitantly stepping inside; the atmosphere was the same as when I first came inside here.
An atmosphere only the rich could create.
A shiver ran down my spine as I noticed the shadow towering over me, someone taller and larger than I was.
I looked up, my eyes meeting with those of a man. He seemed to be in his 20s with long white hair and dark brown eyes. He had round glasses on.
"Who are you?" He said, his hand on the gate, so I was slightly trapped by him.
"No one", I replied quickly, shifting away. "I'm looking for Professor Aaron; he's here, right?"
He opened the gate, looking outside. "Did a carriage drop you here? It looks like you came by foot; why would Mr Aaron want to see someone like you, especially someone who just comes into an academy without seeking permission first!"
"The gates were open!" I defended. "I pushed it, and it opened; it's only now I'm realizing that's not a normal occurrence".
"That's because I opened it to leave; you must have what people call a 'Criminal's sense' to have known exactly when it would be open".
"I'm not-", I gritted my teeth, "How dare you call me a criminal? Who do you think you are?! Teacher? Student? Some stupid political figure?!"
"Are you mad?!", He screamed at me, "You dare talk like that to the person whose future now lies in their hands. I could get you arrested for trespassing on school property".
He raised his glasses. "The only word people need to hear to follow every command is the name Korel Uranus".