Frost Bitten (BxB)

Chapter Fourteen

"So...um, this is the library which, you know, has books and stuff in it. Though, I never really have any reason to go in here since I don't really read that much," Vekki was telling me as she gestured across the large room filled with massive mahogany bookcases, each one of them looking as if they held at least three hundred books.

There were a couple of chocolate colored couches surrounding a small round table in the center of the room, and the entire space was lit up by a massive chandelier that practically glittered with all the gems that hung off of it. Pretty...I guess. However, I didn't care to learn about the library. I wanted to know where Vextian's room was, and where I could find the hangar that could get me off of this planet.

I glanced at Vekki as she turned to face me, an awkward frown still on her face as she rubbed at her exposed upper arms. "Are you a reader, Asurah?"

I pursed my lips and shook my head, not really caring for such trivial conversation. "Not really. I used to be, though." My chest grew tight as an image of Joseph's face popped to the forefront of my mind. "Someone distracted me from them, not that I really complained."

Vekki's eyes grew soft with sympathy, the Tronian woman averting her gaze. "Your husband...right." She shyly glanced back at me, and dammit, I was beginning to wonder if she truly was being genuine, for it was hard to find any deception in her round face. "Look, I'll settle this crap with my brother and try to convince him to send you back home. What he did was absolutely horrible, and if our parents were still alive, they would be ashamed of his actions."

I snorted and shook my head, jutting my hip to the side as I looked away from her, towards a Tronian child who was staring at me with curiosity, the little one hiding behind a corner. "I highly doubt he would go for that," I turned my attention back towards my shorter guide, "he seems to be basking in the delusion that he owns me. He claims our fathers betrothed us to stop a war, or something like that." I frowned at the way Vekki went still, her eyes wide as she blinked slowly, almost as if she was battling conflicting thoughts.

The way she was acting made me frown and wonder if I had said too much, and I couldn't help the fear that began to climb within me. "W-What's with the face? You look like I just threw your favorite pet into a volcano."

Vekki's lips twitched as if my comment slightly amused her, but that serious expression fell back onto her soft face. "Asurah, what do you know about our laws?"

I blinked, caught off guard by the question as I narrowed my eyes and took a subtle step back. "I don't really know any of your laws. Why would I?"

Vekki pulled her long black hair over her shoulder and stared at the ends, hesitating for a moment before she spoke. "When a Tronian is betrothed, it is law by our gods that they eventually marry. After all, it is the gods intention that the paired are soulmates. If your father and my father made the decree that you and Vextian were to one day bond....I-I'm afraid there's not really much I could do without angering our gods." She shook her head and began pacing, nibbling harshly at her bottom lip. "I just thought my brother was being a jerk, and yeah, he shouldn't have done what he did...but..." she shook her head again and glanced at me, "I-I got to go. I'm so sorry." And with that she about-faced and rushed away from me, leaving me to stand there with dread spreading within me.

So she wasn't going to help me escape here then? Damn. I guess I should have seen this coming, but of course, I just had to hold on to that tiny sliver of hope. How naieve of me to believe that there was even the smallest of possibilities that someone cared enough to help me.

Whatever. I could find my way out of here without her.

I turned to continue my search, and froze upon seeing the Tronian kid that had been staring at me, those large black eyes practically piercing into me as those tiny little wings twitched. And we just stood there staring at one another, and it was honestly starting to get a little awkward, the silence growing. Finally though, he spoke, his voice tiny. "Y-You look like my friend Tuani."

I frowned and furrowed my brows, feeling a little awkward by this little accusation. "Um...thanks, I guess?" I shook my head slightly and went to walk past him. But leave it to the little one to think that was an invitation for him to follow me.

"Seriously, you do. You're both super-duper pretty and are super white and stuff." I glanced towards him as he looked off to the side, still keeping up with my pace as I wondered down the hallway. "Though, I don't see him a lot anymore since King Vex likes him and stuff."

I stopped in my tracks and turned towards him, my mind in a million different places at once as I tried to piece together what this kid was trying to say. "He likes him? How do you know that?" And does this Tuani seriously look like me? Because if so, that is just freaking creepy, I added in my mind, watching as the kid nodded his head, shifting his body shyly.

"I sometimes hear them doing the naughty stuff when I'm playing hide and seek with my friends."

I stared down at the kid, feeling grossed out that Vextian was apparently...well, sleeping with a dude that looked like me. Well, according to this child, but what child would make up something as elaborate and random as that? And what use did Vextian have of me if he already had someone to warm his bed?

Hell, should I even trust whatever the hell this kid was saying? After all, so far my interactions with Tronians showed me how untruthful they could be. And besides, he was a child...so should I really be believing whatever came out of his mouth? Besides, what were the odds that there was actually someone out there who resembled me that much? Well, other than a Glacic, but surely Vextian wouldn't have kidnapped one of my people to warm his bed if he was intending such a position for me.

Right?

Though, the longer I thought about it, the more I began to realize the full extent to what he had said. He said he had heard them, right? Which meant that he knew where Vextian's room was. And if I could get there...maybe I would find something in there that could help me get back home, or at the very least, reveal the extent of his plans to me.

I knelt down to his level and tilted my head, trying to make him comfortable by giving him a warm smile. "Can you show me this Tuani? If he looks a lot like me, and is as nice as you say, I'd would like to be friends with him." I looked around the hallway to see if there was anyone eavesdropping on our conversation, but when I saw no one, I looked back to the little one. "Does Vextian keep him in his bedroom?"

The kid blinked and nodded, nibbling at his bottom lip. "He doesn't really like it if Tuani leaves, so you gotta promise that you will make friends with him in the room, ok? I don't want King Vex to get mad at me, ok?"

I nodded my head and held out my pinkie, something Joseph had taught me early in our relationship. "I pinkie promise."

The little one stared at the appendage for a moment, before he hesitantly looped his pinkie with mine, nodding his head. "Ok, let's go visit Tuani!"

A/N: Alrighty, here's the second chapter for the day! And there will be a surprise coming soon as a Thanksgiving kind of present, and it is coming in the form of a oneshot/mini story between Asurah's parents! There are some interesting new things you might learn about Asurah's dad specifically (it's in his pov) that may prove to be shockinggggg. 

That little one shot should show up in Frozen Treats, however, if you can't access that book because of the mature rating on it, be sure to let me know so that I can create a oneshot book where I can put it and any other non-smexy oneshots.