A slave in the harem

Astrid wakes up in the morning. She enjoys how the soft silk brushes over her naked body for a moment.

Naked body?

She jumps out of bed, looking around. She doesn't recognize the room and as the memories of previous night come back, she is frozen in terror. What happened after she fell from the balcony? She is obviously alive... So she didn't dream about the dragon. But if she didn't dream about that how did she end up here? More than that. Why did she end up wearing nothing...

She takes a deep breath and starts looking for her clothes, but they aren't anywhere in sight. She wants to open the cabinets, but she doesn't know whose room is this and she doesn't want to steal clothes.

She sighs. She wraps the silk sheet over her chest and slowly opens the door. She takes a sneak peek outside, but it's just another empty room.

She looks around here too, hoping she can find her dress.

Focused on that, she doesn't notice when the door opens.

"Astrid?"

Astrid jumps out of her skin.

"Tamara?"

The maid behind Tamara looks at this little slave girl, dressed in only a bed sheet, calling the princess after her first name, and almost chokes with her own breath.

Tamara chuckles.

"Call me Lady Tamara when others are around. This place was built on stuck-up traditions and would crumble without them." Tamara says, but she seems more amused than offended. "What are you doing here? Like this?"

"I... I woke up and... my clothes..." Astrid mumbles.

"You passed out on the balcony." Tamara explains. "I called the doctor and she said it's from exhaustion so I asked the maids to take off your clothes and put you to sleep. That is your room. You have a few dresses in the cabinets."

With that, she takes Astrid and shows her the dresses.

So she just passed out? And everything was just a dream.

Astrid touches her arm, where she felt his hands grabbing her. It felt real.

She shakes her head.

Tamara tells her to get dressed as she needs to attend her classes; All new girls need to study manners, history, and culture. They also have to take art lessons, lean how to dance and play an instrument.

Astrid doesn't mind it at all.If she ignores that they are beiing prepared to be entertainers for that man, she can enjoy learning new things. She always liked school, as she didn't have a lot of friends, so she buried her head in the books. She wonders if they will have access to poetry books. She would love that.

The Lady Chaperone writes the word  ‘introduction’ on the big board in the classroom.

"We will pass through everything fast and we won't return to lessons so pay attention. Right now, you have nothing and you are nothing. Your knowledge will be your only weapon. Sharpen it."

The first lesson is history, but Astrid knows all this already, so she just lets the story of the past fill her mind.

They were five kingdoms at the beginnings of time. North, South, Weast, East, and Valaria. Valaria was the weakest. A barren land in between greater powers that no one wanted to claim. Filled with fire and volcanos as far as the eye could see.

Until one day, when in every corner of the world, a blood-freezing howl was heard. No one knows how, but a great beast had made his nest at the top of the tallest Vulcano in Valaria. A dragon... It terrorized travelers for decades until a young prince from the southern kingdom set on an adventure to kill the beast. For years and years, no one heard from him and all assumed he was dead.

Until the prince reappeared. Riding the dragon he tamed and bearing the flags of all the other kingdoms he conquered alone, building the empire of Valaria.

From there, every new king had to tame the dragon before claiming the throne. Or be eaten by the beast.

For hundreds of years, there was no one who could challange the power of the Dragon Kings of Valaria.

A terrifying story meant to be told by parents to children. Generation after generation. So they would all learn not to question the power of their king, not to revolt, not to complain. Only to fear.

After classes, the girls were sent to do chores around the court. Some were sent to help in the kitchen, some to clean and others to wash clothes down by the river.

Since Astrid was technically a higher rank, as she was the personal maid of a princess, she had nothing to do. Lady Tamara usually left the palace in the mornings to go hunting anyway. So she joined Lanna to help clean the fountain in the garden.

It's a hot summer day so the coldness of the water feels so good. Their dresses are soaked wet and heavy, but with no supervision around, they do not mind it and start to play. The eunuch that was supposed to watch them fell asleep next to a tree so the few girls started splashing and laughing, chasing each other around the statue of Venus in the middle of the fountain.

"Look at them... Such blunt disrespect! Eunuch! take those and throw them in the dungeon!" A melodious, but mean voice says, stopping the fun.

The girls all turn around to see the king, standing a few feet from them. His favorite woman, Lysa is clinging by his arm and looking with disgust at them.

"You... Your Majesty... we...we were playing and..." One of the girls falls on her knees and cries.

"You address the king directly little dirty slave? Eunuchs, throw her in irons !" Lysa asks, but the king doesn't seem to care. He is too busy staring at Astrid, who doesn't let her head down but blushes a little, remembering the dream from last night.

Finally, the king speaks, when the eunuchs approach the girls.

"Since when does a concubine order for someone to be thrown in the dungeons?" The king asks the eunuchs and they freeze.

"But my love..." Lysa tries to protest, but her face is red with embarrassment.

"Let the slaves have their fun, Lysa, and don't exhaust your pretty head with that that don't concern you." His voice is calm, but the threatening undertone makes Lysa shut her mouth.

After they leave, the girls are rushed inside, where The Lady Chaperone gives them an hour-long scolding.

Tamara chokes herself with laughter when Astrid tells her everything in the evening.

"Good God, I wish I could have seen Lysa's face when he refused her order."

"She is so beautiful though..." Astrid answers, thinking why exactly she is here when the king has someone like Lysa at his arm, ready to please him at any moment. Everyone is saying the king took intrest in her, but why are they so sure it's a romantic interest. Maybe it's like a cat and mouse game. He wanted a new toy to torment?

She points this out to Tamara and the princess rolls her eyes.

"My brother is not like that. He finds no joy in tormenting others." Tamara answers.

"But the girls he rejects are given to the dragon to be eaten. And he watches." Astrid answers and Tamara laughs again.

"That rumor was spread by the slave masters to scare you. The girls that are rejected are sent to work as maids in the other houses my family owns. No one gets killed for fun and Drogo doesn't eat humans."

"The slave masters..."

"Yes... Under my father's reign, the lords gained more power, as he wasn't interested in governing the empire. The slave masters work for the lords and they became more savage. With my brother's coronation, they tried to push the boundaries, to see how much they can get away with." Tamara explains.

"The slave masters don't work for the palace?"

"No. If the palace wanted maids or if the king wanted concubines, I am sure many women would offer by themselves. The lords keep insisting to maintain the slave's gifting because it's cheaper for them."

"Cheaper. They do all of this because it's cheaper?" Astrid can't believe the cruelty. "And no one does nothing?"

"Well, my brother tried."

"How?" Astrid is furious.

"By rejecting the slaves a lord sends you basically slap his hand. My brother rejected everyone's gift without even looking at them. The lords are raging. But he accepted your group. So everyone got a bit confused. But still, now the lords have backed down a bit until they figure what exactly the new king wants." Tamara explains patiently.

Astrid is surprised. Of course, Tamara can simply lie, but she doesn't feel the princess would.

Tamara notices and take Astrid's hand.

"I know you came here thinking this is a hell. But please, set the prejudices aside. Look at it with a clean mind. Directly and objectively. God knows he needs this."

With that, Astrid's world crumbles. Everything she thought she knew is questioned and now she has to re-build her life from scrtach in this complicated place.